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AN 



ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR 



OF THE 



English Language. 



By JOHN S. HART, LL.D., 

LATE PROFESSOR OF RHETORIC AND OF THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE AND LITERATURE IN 

THE COLLEGE OF NEW JERSEY, FORMERLY PRINCIPAL OF THE NEW JERSEY 

STATE NORMAL SCHOOL, AUTHOR OF A SERIES OF TEXT-BOOKS 

ON THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE, ETC., ETC. * 









PHILADELPHIA: 

ELDREDGE & BROTHER, 

17 North Seventh Street. 

1878. 



A SERIES OF TEXT-BOOKS 

ON 

THE ENGLISH LANGUAGE. 

By JOHN S. HART, LL.D. 

-™*^_ ft\w\ 

Language-Lessons for Beginners. , Y* 

An Elementary English Grammar. 
English Grammar and Analysis. 
First Lessons in Composition. 
Composition and Rhetoric. 
A Short Course in Literature. 
A Manual of English Literature. 
A Manual of American Literature. 
A Class Book of Poetry. 



1*7* 



v "h Entered, according to Act of Congress, in the year 1878, by £ 

{ ELDREDGE & BROTHER, 

J* 



in the Office of the Librarian of Congress, at Washington. 






J. FAGAN & SON, 
ELECTROTYPERS, PHILAD'A. 




CAXTON PRESS OF SHERMAN & CO. 




Preface. 



In this volume the Author has selected from his larger Grammar 
those portions which are purely of an elementary character, and 
which are studied by beginners in first going over the subject. The 
whole of Prosody, all of the chapter on the Derivation of Words, 
and the fine print matter of the other portions, are omitted. On 
the other hand, copious explanations, and a complete series of 
practical exercises, are appended to the several definitions and rules. 
The knowledge of each rule and definition is thus thoroughly tested 
and impressed on the memory before the pupil is allowed to pro- 
ceed to more advanced knowledge. 

The work, as now offered, is the result of long experience in the 
class-room, and of no little reading and study. The English lan- 
guage and its literature have been for many years the main subjects 
of the author's inquiry, and he has endeavored in this volume to 
give the results of his observations in the form which his experience 
as a teacher has convinced him to be the best adapted to the wants 
of the learner. 

A word as to the method pursued. The author has endeavored 
to bear in mind that he was writing, not a treatise for the learned, 
but a text-book for learners. For such a book, — 

The first and most imperative demand is clearness, — clearness 
of arrangement, and clearness of expression. 

iii 



IV PREFACE. 

Next and hardly less imperative is the demand that the more and 
the less important should be carefully discriminated, and the differ- 
ence plainly set forth to the eye. 

A third imperative demand is that the rules, definitions, and 
other matter to be committed to memory, should be expressed with 
the utmost possible conciseness. 

A fourth requisite is that every rule and definition should be sup- 
ported and illustrated by a goodly array of apt practical examples. 
These are as necessary in teaching grammar as sums are in teaching 
arithmetic. 

How far these things have been secured is for the reader to judge. 





Preface, iii 

Introduction, 7 



Part L 



ORTHOGRAPHY. 



Orthography, 



Part II. 



ETYMOLOGY. 

Nouns, 14 

Articles, 25 

Adjectives 26 

Pronouns, 30 

Verbs, . 37 

Adverbs, 70 

Conjunctions 74 

Prepositions, • 75 

Interjections, 77 

Words used as Different Parts of Speech, 77 

1* y 



VI CONTENTS. 



Part III. 



SYNTAX. 

PAGE 

Syntax, 80 

1. The Nominative, 81 

2. The Verb, .... * 84 

3. The Objective Case and the Verb, 87 

4. The Objective Case and the Preposition, 89 

5. The Possessive Case, . . . 91 

6. Apposition, 93 

7. Case after the Verb To be, 95 

8. The Pronoun, 97 

9. The Article 103 

10. The Adjective, 104 

11. The Adjective Pronoun, 106 

12. The Participle, 108 

13. The Adverb, Ill 

14. The Infinitive Mood, 113 

15. The Conjunction, 115 

16. The Interjection, 116 

Review Exercises, . . . . . 117 

Exercises in Correction of False Syntax, 121 

Selections for Parsing, 125 



0XK0 

NOTE TO TEACHERS. 

The matter in this book is divided into three kinds, indicated by three 
varieties of type, and it is important that the object of this arrangement 
should be clearly understood. 

1. It is intended that the scholar should first go through the book, learn- 
ing the matter in the largest type only, with the declensions and conjuga- 
tions, and with such oral explanations from the teacher, and such portion 
of the Exercises, as may be found expedient. 

2. Having gone over the whole ground once, or perhaps twice, in this 
way, the scholar will be prepared to take up profitably the remaining por- 
tion of the Exercises, and the matter in the intermediate type. This in- 
termediate matter, however, is not intended to be committed to memory 
verbatim, like the rules and definitions in the largest type. 

3. The matter in the smallest type is intended mainly for explanation. 



AN ELEMENTARY 

English Grammar. 



oX*o 



Grammar is the science which treats of Language.* 

Explanations. — We say that Arithmetic is the science which treats 
of numbers, Botany is the science which treats of plants, Astronomy is 
the science which treats of the stars. So, Grammar is the science which 
treats of language. 

Knowledge on any subject, arranged in some regular order, is called 
a Science. 

The words which a people use in speaking or writing are called a 
Language. 

The object of studying Grammar is to be able to understand, speak, 
and write a language correctly. 

Grammar is divided into four parts ; namely, Or- 
thography, Etymology, Syntax, and Prosody. 

Orthography treats of Letters, Etymology of 
Words, Syntax of Sentences, and Prosody of Versifi- 
cation. 

* See Note to Teachers on page 6. 




First Part. 

ORTHOGRAPHY. 

The first part of Grammar is called Orthography. 
Orthography treats of Letters. 

I. LETTERS TAKEN SEPARATELY. 

Letters' are written characters or signs used to rep- 
resent certain sounds of the human voice. 

A letter that is not sounded in speaking is called a silent letter. 

The letters of any Language are called its Alphabet. 
The English Alphabet contains twenty-six letters. 
Letters are divided into Vowels and Consonants. 
A Vowel may be fully sounded by itself. 
A Consonant cannot be fully sounded unless in 
connection with a vowel. 

Vowels. 

The Vowels are a, e, i, 0, u, and sometimes w and 
y. All the other letters are Consonants. 

8 



ORTHOGRAPHY. i) 

W and y are consonants when they precede a vowel sound in 
the same syllable ; but are vowels in all other places. 

A Diphthong is the union of two vowels in one 
sound ; as oi in voice. 

A Triphthong is the union of three vowels in one 
sound ; as, ieu in adieu. 

The triphthongs are three in number, eau, ieu, iew; as in beauty, 
lieutenant, review. 

XT after q is never counted as part of a diphthong or of a 
triphthong. 

Exercises. — Which of the letters in the word Philadelphia 
are vowels? "Which are consonants? Name the vowels, conso- 
nants, diphthongs, and triphthongs in the following words : 

Sounding Lieutenant Separation 

Abundant Loitering Boisterous 

Name (or write) three words in which w is used as a conso- 
nant, three in which y is used as a consonant, three in which w 
is used as a vowel, three in which y is used as a vowel. 

Name (or write) five words each containing a diphthong, five 
containing a triphthong. 

Note. — The teacher will add other examples until the scholar be- 
comes familiar with the classification. 

II. WORDS AND SYLLABLES. 

A Word is a collection of letters used together to 
represent some idea. 

A few words consist of only one letter each. 

A Syllable is so much of a word as can be pro- 
nounced by one impulse of the voice ; as, con in con- 
tain. 



10 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

Spelling is putting letters together correctly so as 
to form syllables and words. 

A Sentence is a number of words put together so 
as to make complete sense ; as, John wrote a letter. 

A word of one syllable is called a Monosyllable ; 
of two, a Dissyllable ; of three, a Trisyllable ; of 
more than three, a Polysyllable. 

Example. — Truth is a monosyllable ; truth-ful, a dissyllable ; 
truth-ful-ness, a trisyllable; un-truth-ful-ness, a 'polysyllable. 

Exercise. — Name the class to which each of the following 
words belongs: nation, uprightness, incomprehensible, authority, 
frequent, plague, opportunity, horse, element, elementary, rob- 
ber, vowel, consonant. 

Name (or write) five monosyllables, five dissyllables, five tri- 
syllables, five polysyllables. 

Note. — The teacher may add other examples at will. 
RULES FOR SPELLING. 

RULE I.— Y final. 

Part i. — IT final, preceded by a consonant, is changed 
into i on taking a suffix; &s,fanc-y,fanc-i-ful, (not 
fane-y-ful) 
A suffix is something added to the end of a word. 

Exception 1. — Before oils, y sometimes becomes e; as, beaut-y, 
beaut-e-ous. 

Exception 2. — Before ing, y is not changed; as, tarr-y, tarr- 
y-ing. 

Part 2. — Y final, preceded by a vowel, is not 
changed on taking a suffix; as, play, play-er. 



ORTHOGRAPHY. 11 

Exceptions. — Day, which makes daily ; lay, pay, and say, 
which make laid, paid, and said, together with various other 
derivatives and compounds, as mislaid, imp aid, unsaid^ etc. 

Exercises. — Spell the words formed by adding ful to mercy, 
plenty, bounty, duty, pity ; by adding es and ing to cry, pry, try, 
apply, deny, rely ; by adding er and est to merry, sorry, saucy, 
holy. 

Correct any of the following which need correction, and give 
the Rule for each change: lihe-ly-hood, handy -craft, quarry -ed, 
journey -ed, beauty -ful, glory -ous, pity-ous, pity -ful, melody -es, 
melody-ous, gay-ety, gay-ly, witty-ly, witty-er, betray -er, journey- 
ing. 

Name (or write) five examples of y final changed to i, under 
Part 1 of the Rule. 

Five examples of y final becoming e, under Exception 1. 

Five examples of y final not changed, under Exception 2. 

Five examples of y final not changed, under Part 2 of the Rule. 

RULE II. — E final, silent. 

Part i. — E final, silent, on taking a suffix begin- 
ning with a vowel, is dropped ; as, care, car-ing. 

Exception 1. — Ie, on taking the suffix ing, is changed into y ; 
as die, dy-ing. 

Exception 2. — Bye (to color), hoe, and shoe do not drop e on 
taking the suffix ing ; as, dye-ing, hoe-ing, shoe-ing. 

Exception 3. — Singe, swinge, and tinge do not drop e on tak- 
ing the suffix ing. This is to retain the soft sound of the g, and 
to distinguish them from the corresponding forms of sing, siring, 
ting. Thus : sing-ing, siring-ing, ting-ing ; singe-ing, sicinge-ing, 
tinge-ing. 

Exception 4. — Ce and ge, on taking a suffix beginning with 
a, o, or u, do not drop the e. This is to retain the soft sound of 
the c and g. Thus: service-able, not servic-able; change-able, not 
chang-able. 



12 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

Part 2. — E final, silent, on taking a suffix beginning 
with a % consonant, is not dropped; as, care, care-ful. 

Exceptions. — Judgment, lodgment, abridgment, achioicledg- 
ment, argument; wisdom, nursling; duly, truly, awful, with 
some corresponding derivatives of due and true, such as duty, 
dutiful, truth, truthful, etc. 

Exercises. — Spell the words formed by adding ing to lite, 
force, revive ; by adding able to admire, adore, deplore. 

Form the following compounds, and give the rule for each 
change : ripe-en, ripe-ness, smohe-ing, lie-ing, sphere-ical, dispute- 
ant, tire-some, tie-ing, tie-ed, pave-ment, pave-ing, serve-ice-able, 
defense-ible, defense-less, cure-able, marriage-able, trace-ing, trace- 
able, fame-ous, courage-ous, re-pulse-ive-ness. 

Name (or write) ^ve examples of e final dropped, under Part 
1 of the Kule. 
Five examples of ie changed to y, under Exception 1. 
Five examples of e final not dropped, under Part 2 of the Rule. 

RULE III. — Words ending in 11. 

Words ending in II drop one I on taking a suffix 
beginning with, a consonant; as, full, ful-ness ; also 
sometimes on taking a prefix ; as, full, handful; till, 
un-til. 

Note. — Words ending in any other double letter are spelled in 
composition in the same manner as when alone ; as, stiff, stiff -ness. 

Exercises. — Spell the words formed by adding to all the 
words though, together ; by combining with and all; by com- 
bining arm andfull. 

Form the following compounds, and give the Rule for each 
change : full-fill, tall-er, buzz-ing, all-ways, well-come, use-full, 
all-most, puff-ing. 

Name (or write) five examples of I dropped on taking a suffix. 

Five examples of I dropped on taking a prefix. 



ORTHOGRAPHY. 13 

RULE IV. — Doubling the final consonant. 

In words accented on the last syllable, a final con- 
sonant, if single, and if preceded by a single vowel, 
is doubled on taking a suffix beginning with, a vowel ; 
as, permit, permit- t-ing. 

Monosyllables, being always accented, come of course under this Rule. 

Mote. — Here are four conditions: 1. The last syllable must 
have the accent ; 2. It must end in a single consonant ; 3. This 
single consonant must be preceded by a single vowel; 4. The 
Suffix must begin with a vowel. 

Examples. — In offer-mg, the first condition is wanting ; in 
torment-vug, the second condition; in appeal-mg, the third; in 
aver-ment, the fourth. 

Exercises. — Spell the words formed by adding ing and ed to 
remit, impel; ist to drug, machine, novel, natural; er to revel; 
ed to fulfil, rub, fail, refer ; ing to squat, sail, gallop, hum ; ant 
to assist ; ent to excel ; ine to adamant; ate to alien, origin; en 
to red, moist, fright ; ar to consul; er to propel; ous to moun- 
tain ; y to mud, meal, sleep ; ee to commit, absent, patent ; ard 
to slug, drunk, N. B. — In forming each combination, give the 
Rule applicable to it. 

Name (or write) ^ve examples of doubling the final consonant 
under the Rule. 

Five examples in which the first condition only is wanting. 

Five, in which the second only is wanting. 

Five, in which the third only is wanting. 

Five, in which the fourth only is wanting. 

RULE V. — The terminations eive and leve. 

In such words as receive, relieve, etc., ei is used if 

the letter c precedes ; as, receive, deceive ; but ie is used 

if any other letter precedes ; as, relieve, believe. 

Exercise. — Correct the mistakes, if any, in the following 
words : retreive, perceive, acheive, concieve, beleive. 
2 



Second Part. 

ETYMOLOGY. 

The second part of Grammar is called Etymology. 
Etymology treats of Words. 

CLASSIFICATION OF WORDS. 

The classes of words in English are nine ; namely, 
Nouns^ Articles, Adjectives, Pronouns, Verbs, 
Adverbs, Conjunctions, Prepositions, and In- 
terjections. 

Note. — These classes of words are generally called the Parts 
of Speech. 

I. NOUNS. 

A Noun is the name of any person, place, or thing ; 
as, boy, school, booh. 

What is your name? Give the names of five persons that you 
know. What is the name of the place in which you live? Give 
the names of five other places. Name five things that you can 
see. Name five things that you can think of but cannot see. 

All these names are nouns. 

14 



ETYMOLOGYo 15 

In the sentence, " Charles went to Boston in the boat," what 
part of speech is Charles? Why? Boston? Why? Boat? 
Why? 

In the following sentences state which words are nouns, and 
why? 

In coming from Trenton to Philadelphia, I saw John on the 
boat with a satchel of books in his hands. 

The book had good covers, but bad print. 

The boy had a knife with a small blade. 

The horse in the stable has a good disposition. 

Temperance and industry promote health. 

Religion exalts a nation. 

Beauty is a fading flower. 

Note. — The teacher should repeat the foregoing exercises, and form 
others like them, until the learner becomes familiar with the subject, 
and can go through any sentence and indicate the nouns with facility. 

Name (or write) five nouns. 

I. CLASSIFICATION OF NOUNS. 

Nouns are divided into two general classes, Proper 
and Common. 

A Proper noun is a name given to only one of a 
class of objects ; as, John, London, Delaware. 

Note. — A Proper noun should always begin with a capital 
letter. 

A Common noun is a name given to any one of a 

class of objects ; as, boy, city, river. 

Explanation.— There is a class of objects called " boys." The name 
"boy" is given to any one of that class. It is common to them all. 
One particular boy is called "John." That is his particular name. 
It is peculiar or proper to him. So " city " is a name given in common 
to any one of another class of objects. But " London" is the name 



16 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

given to one particular city. It belongs peculiarly and properly to that 
city. Any one of a certain other class of objects is called a "river." 
The name is common to all such objects. But one particular object of 
this kind is called " Delaware." It belongs properly to that particular 
river. 

A Collective noun is the name of a collection of 
objects considered as one ; as, army, crowd. 

Exercises. — Which of the following nouns are Proper ? 
which Common ? and which Collective ? james, isaiah, pro- 
phet, australia, island, regiment, plymouth, town, herd, Wash- 
ington, england, county, fiock, elizabeth, woman, class, table, 
chair, book, hudson. 

Which of the foregoing nouns should begin with a capital 
letter ? 

What is your own proper name? What is your common name? 
Name (or write) six proper nouns, six common nouns, six 
collective nouns. 

II. ATTRIBUTES OF NOUNS. 

Nouns have the attributes of Gender, Number, 
Person, and Case. 

I. GENDER. 

Gender is the distinction of nouns in regard to 
Sex. 

Nouns have three genders, Masculine, Feminine, 
and Neuter. 

The Masculine denotes objects of the male sex ; 
as, boy, man. 

The Feminine denotes objects of the female sex; 
as, girl, ivoman. 

The Neuter denotes objects without sex; as, book, 
river. « 



ETYMOLOGY. 



17 



Modes of Distinguishing Sex. 

There are three ways of distinguishing sex : 1. By the use of 
different words, as bachelor, maid ; 2. By difference of termina- 
tion, as abbot, abbess ; 3. By prefixing or affixing another word, 
as he-goat, she-goat; landlord, landlady. 



Masculine. 
Bachelor 
Beau 
Boy 
Brother 
Bull 
Bullock 
Ox 
Steer 
Colt 
Earl 
Father 
Friar, monk 
Gander 
Horse 
Husband 
and many other 




different words. 

Masculine. 
King 
Lad 
Lord 
Male 
Man 
Master 
Nephew 
Papa 
Earn 
Sir 
Son 
Stag 
Swain 
Uncle 
Wizard 



Feminine. 
queen 
lass 
lady 
female 
woman 
miss, mistress 
niece 
mamma 
ewe 
madam 
daughter 
hind 
nymph 
aunt 
witch 



Masculine. 
Abbot 
Actor 
Arbiter 
Author 
Baron 
Benefactor 
Count 
Deacon 
Duke 
Editor 
Founder 
Giant 

2* 



2. By differe 

Feminine. 
abbess 
actress 
arbitress 
authoress 
baroness 
benefactress 
countess 
deaconess 
duchess 
editress 
foundress 
giantess 



nee of termination. 



Masculine. 
Heir 
Hero 
Lion 
Negro 
Poet 

Shepherd 
Tailor 
Testator 
Bridegroom 
Czar 
Don 
Sultan 
B 



Feminine. 
heiress 
heroine 
lioness 
negress 
poetess 
shepherdess 
tailoress 
testatrix 
bride 
czarina 
donna 
sultana 



18 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

8. By prefixing or affixing another word. 
Masculine. Feminine. Masculine. Feminine. 

Qentlema r a gentlewoman Male-child female-child 

Grandfather grandmother Man-servant maid-servant 
Re-goat she-goat Feacoch ipeahen 

landlord landlady Schoolmaster schoolmistress 

Mote.— Some nouns denote objects which may be either male 
or female ; as, bird, parent. These are said to be of the Com- 
mon gender. 

Exercises. — Name all the nouns in the following sentences, 
state whether it is a proper noun or a common noun, and state 
the gender of each. 

The teacher explained the lesson to the boys and the girls. 

Mary made a fan of the feathers of a peacock. 

The hunter killed a deer and its fawn. 

The king and the queen were on the throne. 

The landlord turned the man, his wife, and their children out 
of the house. 

Mr. Dale bought a horse and a colt for two hundred dollars. 

The shepherdess kept watch over her sheep. 

John caught a fish in the lake. 

My uncle, aunt, and cousin have gone home. 

Name (or write) five nouns of the masculine gender, five of 
the feminine gender, hve of the neuter gender, and lave of the 
common gender. 

II. NUMBER. 

Number is that attribute of Nouns which indicates 
whether One or More than One is meant. 

Nouns have two numbers ; the Singular and the 
Plural. 

The Singular denotes One, the Plural More 

THAN ONE. 



ETYMOLOGY. 19 

Modes of forming the Plural. 

1. Plural in S. 

Nouns generally are made Plural by adding s to 
the Singular ; as, booh, books. 

2. Plural in es. 

Nouns ending in ch soft, s, sh, x, and z, are made 
Plural by adding es ; as, church, churches ; miss, 
misses ; lash, lashes ; box, boxes ; topaz, topazes. 

Note. — Nouns ending in o differ as to the mode of forming the 
plural. Some form the plural by adding es ; as, cargo, cargoes. 
Others form the plural by adding simply s ; as, canto, cantos. 

Exercise. — Spell the plural of negro, lynx, quiz, radish, patri- 
arch, peach, mass, rhombus, trio, motto, folio, halo. 

3. Plural in V es. 

Nouns ending in single/, or in/e, are made Plural 
by changing / or fe into ves ; as, loaf, loaves ; life, 
lives. 

Note. — Nouns in double f follow the general rule ; as, muff, 
muffs. 

Exercise. — Spell the plural of wharf, half, cuff, leaf, beef, 
calf, thief, wife. 

4. Plural in ICS, 

Nouns ending in y after a consonant are made 
Plural by changing y into ies ; as, lady, ladies. 

Note. — Nouns ending in y after a vowel do not change y into 
ies, but form the plural by the general rule ; as, day, days. 

Exercise. — Spell the plural of the following: Ray, toy, chim- 
ney, tray, artery, Monday, February, buoy, boy, attorney, valley, 
money. 



20 



ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 



Note. — The exceptions to the rules for forming the plural of nouns 
will be found treated at large in Hart's Grammar and Analysis, 
page 30. 





5. Nouns irregular 


in the Plural. 




Singular. 


Plural. 


Singular. 


Plural. 


Man 


men 


Tooth 


teeth 


Woman 


women 


Goose 


geese 


Child 


children 


Mouse 


mice 


Foot 


feet 


Louse 


lice 


Ox 


oxen 







Exercises. — Change the following nouns into the plural, and 
give the Rule for each change : 

Sky, church, army, wolf, knife, leaf, wish, crucifix, fish, crutch, 
monarch, peach, patriarch, kiss, sex, pony, ox, calf, muff, leaf, 
radish, valley, turkey, half, money, thief. 

Name all the nouns in the following sentences, and state in re- 
gard to each (1) whether it is proper or common, (2) its gender, 
and (3) its number: 

James and his sister study their lesson in the same book. 

I learned the facts from Mary while going home. 

A great many pigeons w r ere seen on the top of the house. 

Mice are great thieves ; they exercise their nimble feet when 
they hear the cat coming. 

Name (or write) five nouns in the singular number, five in the 
plural number. 

III. PERSON. 

Person is the distinction of nouns in their relation 
to the speaker. 

Note. — Every noun must represent either the speaker, who is sup- 
posed to utter the sentence, the person spoken to, or some person or 
thing spoken of. These three relations of a noun are called Persons. 

Nouns have three persons, First, Second, and 
Third. 



ETYMOLOGY. 21 

The First Person is the Speaker, the Second 
is the one spoken to, the Third is the one spoken 
of. 

Examples. — First person, "7", Paul, beseech you;" second 
person, ^'Children, obey your parents;" third person, " The 
children obey their parents." 

Note. — The distinction of person pertains chiefly to pronouns. Nouns 
are very rarely in the first person. 

Exercises.— Indicate all the nouns in the following sentences, 
and state in regard to each (1) whether it is proper or common, 
(2) its gender, (3) its number, and (4) its person: 

I, the captain of this company, gave the order. 

John, take the slate into the next room. 

Parents are kind to their children. 

Parents, be kind to your children. 

Name (or write) five sentences containing nouns of the second 
person, five of the third person. 

IV. CASE. 

Case distinguishes the relation of a noun or pro- 
noun to other words. 

Nouns have three cases, Nominative, Possessive, 
and Objective. 

The Nominative Case is that in which a noun IS 
THE subject of a Verb ; as, The girl reads. 

The Possessive Case is that which denotes 
ownership OR POSSESSION ; as, Mary's book. 

The Objective Case is that in which the noun is 

THE OBJECT OF SOME VERB OR PREPOSITION ; as, 

" Mary wrote a letter." " William went into the 
street? 

* At this point, it may be well for the teacher to explain so much of the na- 
ture of the verb as is given on pages 37 and 38. 



22 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

How to find the Nominative. — The subject of the verb may- 
be found by putting u who " or " what " before the verb and 
asking the question. Example: "A man bought a hat." Who 
bought? Ans. Man. Therefore, "man" is the subject of the 
verb " bought," and is in the nominative case. 

Exercises. — Name the subject of each verb in the following 
sentences : 

A butcher killed a calf. 

John hurt William. 

William hurt John. 

A horse kicked a man. 

A man kicked a horse. 

Idleness produces poverty. 

Poverty produces idleness. 

How to find the Objective. — The object of a verb or of a 
preposition may be found by putting " whom " or " what " after 
the verb or the preposition and asking the question. Examples: 
" William hurt his sister." Hurt whom ? Ans. Sister. There- 
fore, "sister" is the object of the verb "hurt." "William went 
into the street." Into what? Ans. Street. Therefore, "street" 
is the object of the preposition " into." 

Exercises. — Name the object of each verb and preposition in 

the following sentences : 

John lost his book in the street. 

Mary studied her lesson from the book. 

William gave a ball to John. 

The horse kicked the man. 

The butcher killed the calf. 

Lucy found a dollar on the floor. 

Name the object of each of the prepositions in the following 
sentence : 

William placed his hat on the table in the parlor at the time 
of recess when the boys were at dinner. 



ETYMOLOGY. 23 

Name all the nouns in the following sentences, and tell in re- 
gard to each, (1) whether it is common or proper, (2) its gender, 
(3) its number, (4) its person, (5) its case: 

John's dog caught a rabbit in the meadow. 

Samuel has a pencil in the pocket of his vest. 

Elizabeth saw a man in the field. 

The boys found a nest on a tree in the woods. 

Harry and his cousin caught a large fish in the lake. 

Mary's brother lost his knife in the road. 

Charles rode in his brother's carriage. 

The boys caught a squirrel in the hedge. 

John's friend left his books in the car. 

Name (or write) five sentences containing a noun in the 
nominative case, five in the possessive case, five in the objective 
case in which the noun is the object of a verb, five in which the 
noun is the object of a preposition. 

Form of the Cases. 

The Nominative and Objective cases are alike in 
form. 

The Possessive Singular is formed from the nomi- 
native singular, by adding an apostrophe and s. 

The Possessive Plural is formed from the nomi- 
native plural, by adding an apostrophe only when 
the plural ends in s, and by adding both the apos- 
trophe and s when the plural does not end in s. 

Exercise. — Write (or spell) the following nouns in the pos- 
sessive case, singular : dog, man, baby, boy, James, Thomas, Jane. 

Write (or spell) the following nouns in the possessive case 
plural: attorney, lawyer, mother, beauty, ox, monarch, dandy, 
dray. 

Note. — To decline a word is to give its various cases and numbers. 



24 



ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 





Declension of Nouns. 






Singular. 






Plural. 




Nom. 


Poss. 


Obj. 


Nom. 


Poss. 


Obj. 


Friend 


friend's 


friend 


Friends 


friends' 


friends 


Man 


man's 


man 


Men 


men's 


men 


Church 


church's 


church 


Churches 


churches' 


churche 


Lady 


lady's 


lady 


Ladies 


ladies 1 


ladies 


Jones 


Jones's 


Jones 


Joneses 


Joneses' 


Joneses 






Parsing. 







Note. — Parsing consists in stating the grammatical properties and 
relations of words, and the rules of syntax which properly belong to 
them. The parsing of a word cannot be complete until the rules of 
syntax relating to it are understood and appiied. But a considerable 
part of parsing consists in stating the grammatical properties of a word 
by itself, as shown by etymology, and without reference to the other 
words in the sentence. The stating of these properties in regular order 
is called Etymological Parsing. 

Parsing Exercise. 

Parse "John" and "letter" in the sentence, "John wrote a 
letter." 

Model. — "John" (1) is a proper noun, (2) masculine gender, 
(3) singular number, (4) third person, (5) nominative case, subject 
of the verb " wrote." 

Note. — The figures in the model are not to be recited. They are 
inserted to show the order in which the several properties of the word 
are to be given. These five items must be given, and given in this 
order, in parsing every noun. The scholar in learning, and the teacher 
in hearing the recitation, by following the order of the figures may 
know that nothing is omitted. 

" Letter " is a common noun, neuter gender, singular number, 
third person, objective case, object of the verb "wrote." 

Parse "Mary's" in the sentence, "Mary's book." 

"Mary's" is a proper noun, feminine gender, singular number, 
third person, possessive case. 

Parse "John" in the sentence, "Mary gave her book to John." 



ETYMOLOGY. 25 

u John " is a proper noun, masculine gender, singular number, 
third person, objective case, object of the preposition "to." 
Parse all the nouns in the following sentences : 
Mary's dress. 
John's knife. 

Mary lost a book in the street. 
John's dog caught a rabbit in the woods. 
Mary's kitten ran down the stairs. 
The boys caught a fish in the lake. 
John caught a squirrel in a trap. 
Lucy's sister found a dollar on the floor. 
Henry's cousin killed a snake in the meadow. 
Mary's book was found by John in the street. 

Note. — The teacher should furnish examples until the pupil is familiar 
with the parsing of nouns. 

II. ARTICLES. 

An Article is a word placed before a noun to show 
whether the noun is used in a definite, or in an in- 
definite sense. 

The Articles are a and the. 

Explanation. — If I say," Bring me the book," the meaning is definite. 
I ask for some particular book. But if I say, " Bring me a book," the 
meaning is indefinite, as if I had said, " Bring me any book." 

A is the Indefinite Article, the is the Definite 
Article. 

The Article a is written an before a word begin- 
ning with a vowel sound ; as, a man, an old man, an 
honest man. 
3 



26 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

Note. — In determining whether to use a, or to use an, we 
should notice, not the letter, hut the real sound, with which the 
next word begins. 

A or an means one, and is used only before the 
singular number; as, a man, an apple. 

The is used before both, numbers; as, the man, the 
men. 

Exercise. — Use the indefinite article with the following words: 
inkstand, history, humble, arch, bird, army, unit, eulogy, onion, 
unicorn, heir, wonder, union, honor, herb, engine, yew, ewer, 
hunter. 

Parsing Exercise. 

Parse " an " in the sentence " Give me an apple." 

Model. — "An" is the indefinite article, placed before the noun 

" apple," to show that it is used in an indefinite sense. 
Parse "the" in the sentence "Give me the book." 
"The " is the definite article, placed before the noun "book," 

to show that it is used in a definite sense. 
Parse all the articles and nouns in the exercises on page 25. 



III. ADJECTIVES. 

An Adjective is a word used to qualify a Noun or 
a Pronoun ; as, a good man; they are wise. 

Explanation. — To qualify means here to limit the meaning of a thing, 
to express some of its qualities. An adjective generally denotes some 
quality belonging to an object. It describes the object. It serves to 
show the difference between things having the same name, as good boy, 
bad boy ; sweet apple, sour apple, etc. 

Exercises. — You have a pretty book. What part of speech 
is ooolc ? "What word is used here to qualify or describe your 
book? What part of speech is pretty f What is an adjective? 



ETYMOLOGY. 27 

Name three other words that you can put before the word 
book, telling what kind of a book it is. 

Put a qualifying word in the blank space before each of the 

nouns in the following sentence : I saw a boy with a 

knife cutting a stick. What are these three qualifying 

words? What is an adjective? 

Note. — The adjective does not always stand immediately before the 
noun which it qualifies or describes. Thus I may say, The studious 
girl, or, The girl is studious. In either case, the word " studious " 
qualifies girl. 

What adjective is there in each of the following sentences : 

Jane has a new dress. 

The lesson is not difficult. 

They went home by the wrong road. 

The bird was thought to be beautiful. 

How hot you have made the fire. 

Note. — In each case, after the scholar has named the adjective, 
ask which word it qualifies, and then ask for the definition of an ad- 
jective. 

Name the nouns, articles, and adjectives in the following sen- 
tences : 

This new slate is broken into many pieces. 

I had a beautiful dream last night. 

Wicked men do not have good thoughts. 

A merry heart maketh a glad countenance. 

The old window is so dirty that you cannot see the new houses 
on the hill. 

Use the following adjectives to describe or qualify a noun or 
pronoun : fast, rich, bad, new, wise, black, first, clean, happy, old, 
beautiful, industrious, troublesome, soft, plentiful, hungry. 

Name (or write) five sentences each containing an article, an 
adjective, and a noun. 



28 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. ■ 

Note 1. — Nouns become adjectives when they are used to ex- 
press some quality of another noun; as, gold ring, sea water. 

Note 2, — Adjectives are sometimes used as nouns, and admit 
of number and case ; as, our superiors, his betters, by fifties, for 
twenty^s sake, etc. 

I. NUMERAL ADJECTIVES. 

Adjectives which, express number are called Nu- 
merals. 

Numeral Adjectives are of three kinds, Cakdinal, 
Ordinal, and Multiplicative. 

The Cardinal Adjectives denote how many; as, 
one, two, three, four, etc. 

The Ordinal Adjectives denote in what order; as, 
first, second, third, fourth, etc. 

The Multiplicatives denote how many fold ; as, 
single, double, triple, etc. 

II. COMPARISON OF ADJECTIVES. 

Adjectives are varied by Compaeison. 

The Degrees of Comparison are three, Positive, 
Comparative, and Superlative. 

The Positive expresses the quality; as, small, wise. 

The Comparative expresses the quality in a higher 
or lower degree ; as, smaller, wiser. 

The Superlative expresses the quality in the high- 
est or lowest degree ; as, smallest, wisest. 

Regular Comparison. 
The Comparative is formed by adding er, and the 
Superlative by adding est, to the Positive ; as, great^ 
greater, greatest. 



ETYMOLOGY. 



29 



Adjectives of more than one syllable are generally 
compared by prefixing to the Positive the words more 
and most, less and least; as, numerous; more numer- 
ous, most numerous ; less numerous, least numerous. 

Note 1. — Some adjectives form the Superlative by adding most 
to the end of the word ; as, upper, uppermost 

Note 2. — Dissyllables ending in y or e are generally compared 
by adding er and est; as, happy, happier, happiest; able, abler, 
ablest. 

Irregular Comparison. 



Positive. 
Good 


Comparative. 
better 


Superlative. 
best 


Bad 


worse 


worst 


Little 


less 


least 


Much 


more 


most 


Far 


\ farther 
I further 


S farthest 
( furthest 



Compare the following adjectives : large, small, straight, high, 
long, wide, deep, heavy, happy, wealthy, lovely, lonely, beautiful, 
beloved, foolish, troublesome, unhappy, little, good, bad. 

Parsing Exercises. 
Parse " wise " in the sentence, " Solomon was a wise king. 1 ' 
Model. — "Wise (1) is an adjective, it is used to qualify the 

noun 'king;' (2) it is in the positive degree, compared 'wise, 

wiser, wisest.' " 

Note. — In parsing a numeral adjective, you state (1) that it is an ad- 
jective, and what word it qualifies, and (2) that it is a numeral adjec- 
tive and not compared. 

Parse all the nouns, articles, and adjectives in the following 
sentences : 

A wise son maketh a glad father. 

"William wanted a sweeter orange. 

A large vessel came to New York. 
3* 



30 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

The beautiful landscape resembles a bright picture. 

He gave a double eagle for a silk dress for his third daughter. 

Twenty large vessels sailed up the river in one day. 



IV. PRONOUNS. 

A Pronoun is a word used instead of a noun ; as, 
" The man is happy, because he is benevolent." 

Explanation. — If we had no such words as pronouns, the nouns for 
which they stand would have to be repeated. Thus, in the example 
given, if there were no such word as " he," we would have to say, " The 
man is happy, because the man is benevolent." In long sentences, 
containing a good many particulars, the repetition of the noun would 
become so frequent as to be very disagreeable. Thus, the sentence, 
" William gave his penknife to Henry, and he lent it to Mary to sharpen 
her pencil with it" would become, " William gave William's penknife 
to Henry, and Henry lent the penknife to Mary to sharpen Mary's 
pencil with the penknife." 

Pronouns are divided into three classes; Personal, 
Kelative, and Adjective. 

I. PERSONAL PRONOUNS. 

The Personal Pronouns are five ; I, thou, he, she, 
it ; with their plurals, we, you, they. 

They are called Personal Pronouns because they 
denote person by themselves, and without reference 
to any other word. 

Explanation. — In the sentence, "/wrote it," we know at once what 
person the pronoun " I" is. This word hy itself denotes the first per- 
son. It never denotes any other person. In the phrase, " Who wrote 
it," the pronoun " who " may, or may not, he first person. If the com- 
plete sentence be, "It was /who wrote it," "who" would be the first 
person, because it refers to " I," the person speaking. If the complete 



ETYMOLOGY. 



31 



sentence be, " It was he who wrote it," or " the man who wrote it," 
" who " would be third person, because it refers to " he " or " man." 

Personal and Kelative Pronouns have Gender, Number, Per- 
son, and Case. Adjective Pronouns have Number only. 

The pronoun it is sometimes used indefinitely, that is, without 
referring to any other word ; as, It snoics. 

Declension of the Personal Pronouns. 
First Person — Masc. or Fern. 



Nom. 


Singular. 
I 


Nom. 


Plural, 
we 


Poss. 


my, or mine 


Poss. 


our, or ours 


Obj. 


me 


Obj. 


us. 



Second Person — Masc. or Fern. 
Singular. Plural. 



Nom. thou 

Poss. thy, or thine 

Obj. thee 



Nom. you 

Poss. your, or yours 

Obj. you. 



Third Person — Masculine. 



Nom. 
Poss. 
Obj. 



Singular, 
he 
his 
him 



Third Person 
Singular. 
Nom. she 
Poss. her, or hers. 
Obj. her 



Plural. 
Nom. they 
Poss. their, or theirs 
Obj. them. 

■ Feminine. 

Plural. 
Nom. they 
Poss. their, or theirs 
Obj. them. 



Third Person — Neuter. 



Singular. 
Nom. it 
Poss. its. 
Obj. it 



Plural. 
Nom. they 
Poss. their, or theirs 
Obj. them. 



32 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

Note. — The first and second persons being always present to the view, 
their sex is supposed to be known. A separate form, therefore, is not 
needed to distinguish the sex, as it is in the third person, where the 
person or thing that is spoken of is, or may be, absent. 

Remarks on the Personal Pronouns. 

The person, gender, number, and case of a personal pronoun 
are generally known by its form. 

Exception 1. — In the first and second persons, however, the gender 
cannot be known by the form of the word. The pronoun will be of 
whatever gender the noun is, to which it refers. Thus, in the sentence, 
" Mary, will you bring me the book ? " " you " is feminine, because it 
refers to Mary. If the noun referred to is not given, as, "Will you 
bring me the book ? " you say that the pronoun is either masculine or 
feminine. 

Exception 2. — So in the third person plural, "they, theirs, them/' 
the gender cannot be known by the form of the pronoun, but must be 
found by referring to the noun for which it stands. Thus, in the sen- 
tences, "The boys were here when you saw them" "The girls were 
here when you saw them" " The books were here when you saw them" 
the pronoun " them " is masculine in the first sentence, feminine in the 
second, and neuter in the third. 

Exception 3. — In the second person plural, " you," and in the third 
person singular neuter, "it," the nominative and objective cases have 
the same form. To find, therefore, in any particular instance, whether 
"you" and " it" are nominative or objective, you have to refer to the 
general meaning of the sentence, as you do in finding the case of a noun. 
(See Exercises, page 22.) 

Exception 4.—" You " and " yours " are always plural in form. But 
to know whether the meaning is singular, you must refer to the noun 
for which they stand. Thus, in the sentence, " William, I heard you 
talking," " you " is singular. But, in the sentence, " Boys, I heard you 
talking," " you " is plural. 

Parsing Exercises. 

Parse "he," in the sentence, "When John was at school, he 
wrote a letter to his father." 

Model. — " He " is (1) a personal pronoun, (2) masculine gen- 



ETYMOLOGY. 33 

der, (3) singular number, (4) third person, (5) nominative case, 
subject of the verb " wrote." 

Parse "it" in the sentence, "It snows." 

" It " is a personal pronoun, used indefinitely, (2) neuter gender, 
(3) singular number, (4) third person, (5) nominative case, subject 
of the verb "snows." 

Parse all the Personal Pronouns in the following examples : 

Mary lent her book to her cousin. 

John lost his knife in the grove. 

My cousin brought her books with her. 

The girls recited their lessons to the teacher. 

The teacher said to the boys of her class, " I wish you to take 
your slates and raise them quietly." 

See how it rains. It is a dark night. 

II. RELATIVE PRONOUNS. 

The Eelative Pronouns are, who, tvhich, what, and 
that. 

These are called Eelative Pronouns because they 
relate to some word going before, called the ante- 
cedent ; as, "The boy who wishes to be learned must 
be studious." 

Note. — A Relative Pronoun is always of the same gender, 
number, and person as its antecedent. 

Who is used in speaking of persons; as, "The gen- 
tleman who called," " The lady who called." 

Which is used ordinarily in speaking of inferior 
animals, or of things without life ; as, " The horse 
which was bought," " The pencil which was given." 

That is sometimes used instead of who or which. 

C 



34 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

What, as a relative, takes the place of which when- 
ever the antecedent is omitted. 

" This is [the thing] which I wanted." If we omit the ante- 
cedent, the which must be changed to what. "This is [ 
what I wanted." No* reason can be given for this peculiarity, 
except that custom has made it so. It is a law of the language. 

Who and which are alike in both numbers, and are 
thus declined : 

Sing, and Plur. Sing, and Plur. 



ISTom. who 
Poss. whose 
Obj. whom 



Nom. which 
Poss. whose 
Obj. which. 



What and that are indeclinable. 

Compound Relatives. 

The Compound Eelatives are six, namely, whoever, 
whosoever, whichever, whichsoever, whatever, whatsoever. 

They are formed by adding ever and soever to the 
relatives who, which, and what. 

Whosoever is regularly declined like who ; thus, 

Sing, and Plur. 
Nom. whosoever 
Poss. whosesoever 
Obj. whomsoever. 

The other Compound Eelatives are indeclinable. 

Interrogatives and Responsives. 

In ashing questions, who, which, and what are called 
Interrogatives. 

In answering questions, who, which, and what are 
called Responsives. 



ETYMOLOGY. 35 

Parsing Exercises. 

Parse "who," in the sentence, "John, who was at school, 
wrote a letter to his father." 

Model. — "Who" is (1) a relative pronoun, relating to "John" 
for its antecedent, (2) masculine gender, (3) singular number, (4) 
third person, to agree with "John," and (5) it is in the nomina- 
tive case subject of the verb was. 

Note. — When the case of the pronoun is not determined by its form, 
it must be determined by inquiring whether it is the subject or the 
object of the verb, &c. (See Exercises, page 22.) 

Parse the Relative Pronouns in the following sentences : 

We should avoid all habits which injure the health. 

A thief, who stole a cow which belonged to a poor man, was 
caught in the trap which had been laid for him. 

Children, who fear the Lord, obey their parents. 

The man of whom I bought the knife, which I lost, gave a 
better knife to me in its place. 

The bird whose nest John robbed, uttered pitiful cries. 

Parse the nouns, articles, adjectives, and personal pronouns in 
the foregoing sentences. 

III. ADJECTIVE PRONOUNS. 

The Adjective Pronouns are so called because they 
qualify or limit a noun, as an adjective does. 

The Adjective Pronouns are subdivided into three 
kinds or classes, viz. : Distributive, Demonstrative, 
and Indefinite. 

I. DISTRIBUTIVES. 

The Distributive Adjective Pronouns are each, 
every, either, neither. 

These are called Distributives, because they refer separately 
and singly to each person or thing of a number of persons or 



36 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

things. The Distributive Adjective Pronouns, therefore, are all 
in the singular number. 

Each is used when speaking of two or more. Example: 
"Each of you must go directly home." This would be correct 
whether it is addressed to two persons, or to more than two. 

Every is never used except when speaking of more than two. 
Example: " Every one of you must go directly home." This 
would not be correct if addressed to only two persons. 

Each and every mean all that make up the number, although 
taken separately. 

Either means one or the other, but not both. It is used, there- 
fore, when speaking of but two persons or things. 

Neither means not either. 

II. DEMONSTRATIVES. 

The Demonstrative Adjective Pronouns are this 
and that, with their plurals, these and those. 

They are called Demonstratives, because they point out in a 
definite manner the objects to which they relate; as, "This boy 
recited well, but that boy did not; " "These men are officers, but 
those men are privates." 

III. INDEFINITES. 

The Indefinite Adjective Pronouns are any, all, 
such, some, both, one, none, other, another. 

They are called Indefinites, because they point out in an in- 
definite manner the objects to which they relate. 

One, other, another are sometimes used as nouns. When thus 
used, they are declined. Thus : 

!Nom. One fNom. Other 

Poss. One's Sing. \ Poss. Other's 

Obj. One (Obj. Other 

TNom. Ones C Norn. Others 

Plur. \ Poss. Ones' Plur. \ Poss. Others' 

LObj. Ones. (.Obj. Others. 



ETYMOLOGY. . 37 

A no ther is merely the article an and other, and is used only 

in the singular number, Nom. Another, Poss. Another's, Obj. 

Another. 

Parsing Exercises. 

Parse "this," in the sentence, "John wrote this letter." 

Model. — "This" (1) is a demonstrative adjective pronoun, 
(2) singular number, (3) and belongs to or limits the noun 
" letter." 

Parse the Pronouns, Personal, Relative, and Adjective, in the 
following sentences : 

Every person who receives these favors, should be thankful 
for them. 

Where is that book which I gave to you on Monday, and 
that other book which you received on Tuesday? Ans. I have 
both books ; each is in its right place. 

The father said to his son, "Do you remember any of those 
stories which you heard in either of the lectures of last week?" 

Parse all the adjectives, nouns, and articles. 

V. VERBS. 

A Verb is a word used to assert or affirm ; as, 
" John strikes the table." 

Explanation. — To assert or affirm means to speak or say something 
of a person or thing. The verb declares that something is, or some- 
thing is done. 

Note. — The teacher should pause here, and use every expedient to 
teach the scholar to distinguish the Verb from the other words in a 
sentence, particularly from the Noun and the Adjective. When the 
scholar has learned to distinguish these three parts of speech, the Noun, 
the Adjective, and the Verb, he has really laid the foundation of Gram- 
mar. The rest of the superstructure is comparatively easy. 

Exercises. — Suppose I say, " John walks; " what do I assert 
or affirm of John? Ans. That he walks. What part of speech 
is walks t What is a verb ? 
4 



38 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

In the following sentences, which words are verbs, and why? 

The man rode on a horse. 

The girl spoke to me. 

Clouds move over the earth. 

The man eats his dinner. 

The boy went to school early. 

The slate fell and broke. 

Water runs down hill. 

I heard a loud noise. 

Note. — That which the verb asserts or affirms is generally some ac- 
tion. Sometimes, however, that which the verb asserts or affirms is 
not exactly action, but rather a state of being ; as, " Henry is here," 
" Charles resembles his father." 

In the following sentences, which words are verbs, and why? 

William looks sick. 

Charles is here. 

The horse was in the field. 

The fish are in the lake. 

John was in the boat. 

The boys were in the barn. 

The girls are in the parlor. 

The horses were in the stable. 

A verb is necessary to make a finished sentence, that is, a sen- 
tence in which something is asserted or affirmed. In the follow- 
ing sentence, supply some word which will complete the sentence 

and make it affirm something: Susan — into the house. 

What part of speech is the word ? What is a verb ? 

Supply a verb in each of the following sentences: 

The rain upon the earth. 

I you there. 

They him in the field. 

The cows in the meadow. 



ETYMOLOGY. 39 

Birds in the air. 

The boys in school. 

Summer hotter than winter. 

The horse the wagon. 

I. ATTRIBUTES OF VERBS. 

Verbs have the attributes of Voice, Mood, Tense, 
Number, and Person. 

Certain parts of the verb also are called Partici- 
ples. 

I. VOICE. 

Voice is that attribute of the verb which denotes 
whether the subject or nominative of the verb acts, 
or is acted upon. 

Verbs have two voices, the Active, and the Passive. 

The Active Voice is that form of the verb which 
denotes that the subject or nominative acts, or does 
the thing mentioned ; as, " John strikes the table." 

The Passive Voice is that form of the verb which 
denotes that the subject or nominative is acted upon; 
as, " The table is struck by John.' 7 

Explanation. — Take the sentence, "John strikes the table." The 
subject or nominative of the verb is John, who performs the action. 
It is of him that the assertion is made. But suppose the same action 
to be expressed thus : " The table is struck by John." Here, the sub- 
ject or nominative of the verb is changed. It is of the table that the 
assertion is now made. In the first form of the sentence, the subject of 
the verb acts ; in the second form, the subject is acted upon. That at- 
tribute of a verb by which it thus denotes whether the subject of the 
affirmation acts, or is acted upon, is called Voice. 

In forming the Passive Voice of a verb, and in forming some of the 
Moods and Tenses, certain other words are used in connection with the 
verb, and make a part of it. Thus in the sentence, "The. table is 



40 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

struck," " is " must be taken with " struck." The verb is not " struck " 
by itself, nor " is " by itself, but " is struck " taken together. 

Exercise. — Select all the verbs in the following sentences, and 
state which are in the Active Voice and which in the Passive 
Voice : 

Mary studies her lessons. 

The lessons were studied by Mary. 

Henry caught a fish in the lake. 

The squirrel was caught in the trap. 

The sheep were watched by the shepherd. 

The soldiers marched to the fort. 

The fish were caught in a net. 

The army is commanded by the general. 

Give (or write) three sentences containing a verb in the Ac- 
tive Voice. Three, containing a verb in the Passive Voice. 

II. MOOD. 

Mood is that attribute of a verb by which, it de- 
notes the manner or way in which the assertion is 
expressed. 

Note. — Mood is only another form of the word "mode," and signifies 
manner, or way. 

The assertion may be expressed in five different ways ; thus, I 
write, If I write, I may write, Write, To write ; therefore, Verbs 
have five Moods, the Indicative, the Subjunctive, the Potential, 
the Imperative, and the Infinitive. 

The Indicative Mood is that form of the verb in 
which the assertion is expressed directly and without 
limitation ; as, He writes. 

Explanation. — When we affirm or assert a thing, as if we were cer- 
tain of it, then the verb will be in the Indicative mood ; as, The sun 
shines. My mother loves me. 



ETYMOLOGY. 41 

Note. — The Indicative mood is also used in asking direct ques- 
tions; as, Does the sun shine? Does my mother love me? This 
is sometimes called the Interrogative form. 

The Subjunctive Mood is that form of the verb 
in which the assertion is expressed as an uncertainty ; 
as, If he w rite. 

Explanation. — When we affirm or assert a thing in a way that shows 
that it is not a certainty, as, If I live, the thing will be accomplished; 
Though he slay me, yet will I trust him ; Unless he come, he will lose 
his place : the verb will be in the Subjunctive mood. 

Note 1. — The Subjunctive mood is generally preceded by a 
conjunction, such as if though, although, unless, except, whether, 
or lest. 

Note 2. — The Subjunctive mood is always accompanied by 
another verb in some other mood. Without this it cannot make 
complete sense. Thus, If he study diligently, he will improve. 

The Potential Mood is that form of the verb 
which expresses possibility, liberty, power, willing- 
ness, or obligation ; as, he can write ; he may write ; 
he must ivrite. 

Explanation. — To say, A thing may be, or might be, expresses pos- 
sibility. To say, You may do it, or You might do it, is giving liberty 
to do it. To say, You can do it, or You could do it, shows that you 
have the power to do it. To say, You would do it, expresses a willing- 
ness to do it. To say, You must do it, expresses an obligation to do it. 

Note. — The Potential mood is also used in asking questions; as, May 
I write ? Must I write ? &c. 

A verb in the Potential mood is always accom- 
panied by some one of the words, may, can, must, 
might, could, icould, should; and this accompanying 
word is considered a part of the verb. 



42 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR, 

The Imperative Mood is that form of the verb 
which is used to command, exhort, entreat, or per- 
mit ; as, Write the copy according to the directions ; 
Father, forgive us. 

Examples.— " Soldiers, march." " March " is used to command. 

" Pity the sorrows of a poor old man." " Pity " is used to entreat or 
beg. 

"Fear God and keep his commandments, for this is the whole duty of 
man." " Fear " and " keep " are used to exhort, or persuade, with a 
reason. 

"Sit near me, if you wish." " Sit" is used to permit or allow. 

The nominative case of a verb in the Imperative mood will 
always be thou or you, but it will seldom be expressed. Ex- 
ample: "Sit still," means "Thou or you sit still." 

The Infinitive Mood is that form of the verb 
which is not limited to a subject, or which has no 
subject ; as, To write. 

TS ote. — The Infinitive mood usually has the preposition to 
before it, and the preposition in this case is considered a part 
of the verb. 

Example. — " He told me to sit still, if I wished to hear." u To sit " 
and " to hear " are in the Infinitive mood. 

Exercise. — In the following sentences select all the verbs, and 
state the voice and mood of each : 
Charles studies his lesson. 
The boys caught a rabbit in the woods. 
The rabbit was caught by the boys. 
The lesson was assigned by the teacher. 
If he study his lesson he will improve. 
Though he slay me yet I will trust him. 
If the lesson be recited properly, the class will be dismissed. 



ETYMOLOGY. 43 

Mary must return home when her task is finished. 

The letter may be returned by the postman. 

If I had a book I would study the lesson. 

Charles, bring me that book. 

Boys, study your lessons. 

God said. ''Children, obey your parents." You should keep 
this commandment, if you wish to obtain the reward, which he 
promises, which is. that your days may be long in the land. 

The shepherd takes care of his sheep. If they wander near 
a precipice, he uses a crook to draw them away, for they are 
timid animals. If he ran towards them, they might fall over 
into the gulf. 

Listen to the merry bells. I listen to them with delight. You 
may listen to them without growing weary, if you delight to 
listen to sweet music. 

Give (or write) three sentences containing a verb in the In- 
dicative mood; three in each of the other Moods. 

III. TENSE. 

Tense is tliat attribute of a verb by which it ex- 
presses distinctions of Time. 

There are six Tenses : the Present, the Past, the 
Future, the Present-Perfect, the Past-Perfect, and 
the Future-Perfect. 

Explanations. — The present time is that which is now, as " to-day, " 
" this minute," etc. The past time is that which is gone by, as " yester- 
day," "' last year," etc. Future time is that which is to come, as u to- 
morrow," " next year," etc. 

The words here used to denote time are nouns, or a noun and an 
adjective. But a verb may be likewise used to denote the time of an 
event. Example : " He is sick." The form of the verb " is " denotes 
that he is sick now. "He was sick." The form of the verb "was" 
denotes that he was sick at some time which is past. " He will be sick." 
The form of the verb " will be " denotes that he will be sick in some 
future time. 



44 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

There are three principal distinctions of time, namely, present, past, 
and future. So there are three principal tenses, namely, the present, 
the past, and the future. 

The Present Tense is that form of the verb which 

denotes simply present time ; as, I write. 

The Past Tense is that form of the verb which 
denotes simply past time ; as, I wrote. 

The Future Tense is that form of the verb which 
denotes simply future time ; as, I shall write. 

Note. — A verb in the Future tense is always accompanied by 
some one of the words shall, shalt, will, or wilt, and this ac- 
companying word is considered a part of the verb. 

The Present-Perfect Tense is that form of the 
verb which denotes what is past and finished, but, 
which is connected also with the present time ; as, I 
have written. 

Explanation. — An event may be past and finished, when the period 
of time referred to is not all past, but comes down to the present 
moment. Example : " I have recited my lesson this morning." Here, 
" this morning " is the period of time referred to, and this period is not 
all past yet. But the reciting of the lesson is finished. The thing then 
was done in a period of time of which the present time is a part. It is 
therefore a past and finished act, but connected also with the present 
time. 

That form of the verb which enables it to express this peculiar dis- 
tinction of past time, is called the Present- Perfect tense. 

Note. — A verb in the Present-Perfect tense is always accom- 
panied by one of the words have, hast, or- has, and this accom- 
panying word is considered a part of the verb. 

The Past-Perfect Tense is that form of the verb 
which denotes what was past and finished, before 
some other event which is also past ; as, I had written 
the letter, before it was called for. 



ETYMOLOGY. 45 

Explanation. — An event may have happened some time ago, and 
before another event which also happened some time ago. Example : 
" I had washed my hands when they called me to breakfast." Here 
the washing and the calling both occurred in past time, but the wash- 
ing occurred before the calling. 

That form of the verb which enables it to express this additional dis- 
tinction of past time is called the Past- Perfect tense. 

Note. — A verb in the Past-Perfect tense, in the Indicative 
mood, is always accompanied by one of the words had, or hadst, 
and this accompanying word is considered a part of the verb. 

The Future-Perfect Tense is that form of the 
verb which denotes a future time prior to some other 
time which is itself future ; as, I shall have written 
the letter before it will be called for. 

Explanation. — Here, the writing of the letter and the calling for it 
are both future. They are both to take place hereafter. But the writ- 
ing will be done and finished before the calling for it. 

That form of the verb which enables it to express this peculiar dis- 
tinction of future time is called the Future-Perfect tense. 

Note. — A verb in the Future-Perfect tense is always accom- 
panied by two other words, namely, either shall have, shalt have, 
will have, or wilt have, and these accompanying words are con- 
sidered a part of the verb. 

Name (or write) five sentences containing a verb of the Pres- 
ent tense; five, of the Past tense; five, of the Future tense; five, 
of the Present-Perfect; five, of the Past-Perfect; five, of the 
Future-Perfect. 

IV. PARTICIPLES. 

A Participle is that form of the verb which par- 
takes of the nature both of a verb and of an ad- 
jective. 

Explanation. — "A man deserving blame, should be censured accord- 
ingly." Here " deserving " is a form of the verb " deserve." It ex- 
presses the same fact as the verb, only the assertion is under a sort of 



46 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

limitation, or in a state of suspense, as if we were to say, " If he de- 
serves blame," or " Since he deserves blame." This form of the verb is 
capable also of denoting time, as verbs do. " Deserving blame " means 
doing it now. " Having deserved blame " means having done it in 
some past time. It expresses action also, as verbs generally do. It 
partakes therefore of the nature of a verb. 

But suppose we say, "A man not meritorious in his conduct, should 
be censured." " Meritorious "is an adjective, belonging to " man," or 
qualifying " man." In the same way, " deserving " belongs to or 
qualifies man. It partakes therefore of the nature of an adjective. 

The Participles are three, the Present, the Past or 
Perfect, and the Compound-Perfect. 

The Present Participle denotes that which is now 
in progress ; as, going, being, living, working, etc. 
The Present participles all end in ing. 

The Past or Perfect Participle denotes that which 
is complete or finished ; as, written, stolen, added. 

The Compound-Perfect Participle denotes that 
which is finished before something else mentioned ; 
as, having written, having stolen, having added.* 

V. NUMBER AND PERSON. 

Yerbs have variations of form, to correspond with 
the number and person of their subject. These 
variations are called the Numbers and Persons of the 
verb. 

Verbs have two numbers, Singular and Plural; and 
three Persons, First, Second, and Third. Thus: 

Singular. Plural. 



First Person. I am. 
Second Person. Thou art. 
Third Person. He is. 



First Person. We are. 
Second Person. You are. 
Third Person. They are. 



: For Exercises in Participles, see page 67 



ETYMOLOGY. 47 

II. CLASSES OF VERBS. 

Verbs are divided into the following classes: 
Transitive and Intransitive ; Eegular and Ir- 
regular; Impersonal, Defective, and Auxiliary. 

I. TRANSITIVE AND INTRANSITIVE. 

A Transitive Verb is one which requires an ob- 
jective case to complete the meaning; as, James 
writes a letter. 

An Intransitive Verb is one which does not re- 
quire an objective case to complete the meaning ; as, 
John sleeps. 

Explanation. — When we put "what " after a verb and ask a ques- 
tion, if we can answer it by using some noun, it shows that the verb is 
transitive. Example: "Mary broke a tumbler and cried bitterly." 
Broke what ? Ans. A tumbler. The verb " broke " is transitive. But, 
if we put " what " after the other verb, and ask : Cried lohatf we could 
not answer such a question. The verb " cried " therefore is intransitive. 

Exercise. — Which of the following verbs are transitive, and 
which are intransitive ? Hurt, lift, walk, sit, believe, forget, say, 
rise, raise, fly, go, depart. 

Name (or write) five transitive verbs, five intransitive verbs. 

Note 1. — Some verbs are used both transitively and intransi- 
tively ; as, u He reads well," u He reads a story." 

Note 2. — Intransitive verbs are not used in the Passive Voice. 

II. REGULAR AND IRREGULAR VERBS. 

A Regular Verb is one that forms its Past Tense 
and Past Participle by the addition of ed to its pres- 
ent tense ; as, Present, love ; Past, loved ; Past Parti- 
ciple, loved. 

An Irregular Verb is one that does not form its 
Past Tense and Past Participle by the addition of ed 



48 



ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 



to its present tense ; as, Present, write ; Past, wrote ; 
Past Participle, written. 

Examples of Regular Verbs. 



Present Tense. 


Past Tense. 


Past Participle. 


Live, 


lived, 


lived. 


Love, 


loved, 


loved. 


Instruct, 


instructed, 


instructed. 


Portray, 


portrayed, 


portrayed. 


Walk, 


walked, 


walked. 



Name (or write) ten regular verbs. 



The Irregular Verbs. 



Present. 


Past. 


Past Part. 


Abide, 


abode, 


abode. 


Am, — Is, 


was, 


been. 


Arise, 


arose, 


arisen. 


Awake, 


awoke, awaked, 


awaked. 


Bear (to bring forth), bore, bare, 


born. 


Bear (to carry), 


bore, 


borne. 


Beat, 


beat, 


beat, beaten. 


Begin, 


began, 


begun. 


Bend, 


bended, bent, 


bended, bent. 


Bereave, 


bereaved, bereft, 


bereaved, bereft. 


Beseech, 


besought, 


besought. 


Bestride, 


bestrid, bestrode, 


bestrid, bestridden. 


Betide, 


betid, betided, 


betid. 


Bid, 


bid, bade, 


bid, bidden. 


Bind, 


bound, 


bound. 


Bite, 


bit, 


bitten, bit. 


Bleed, 


bled, 


bled. 


Blow, 


blew, 


blown. 


Break, 


broke, 


broken. 


Breed, 


bred, 


bred. 


Bring, 


brought, 


brought. 


Build, 


built, build ed, 


built, builded. 


Burn, 


burned, burnt, 


burned, burnt. 



ETYMOLOGY. 



49 



Present. 


Past. 


Past Part. 


Burst, 


burst, 


burst. 


Buy, 


bought, 


bought. 


Cast, 


cast, 


cast. 


Catch, 


caught, catched, 


caught, catched. 


Chide, 


chid, 


chid, chidden. 


Choose, 


chose, 


chosen, chose. 


Cleave (to split). 


cleft, clove, 


cleft, cloven. 


Cling, 


clung, 


clung. 


Clothe, 


clothed, clad, 


clothed, clad. 


Come, 


came, 


come. 


Cost, 


cost, 


cost. 


Creep, 


crept, 


crept. 


Crow, 


crew, crowed, 


crowed. 


Cut, 


cut, 


cut. 


Dare (to venture), 


dared, durst, 


dared. 


Deal, 


dealed, dealt, 


dealed, dealt. 


Dig, 


dug, digged, 


dug, digged. 


Do, 


did, 


done. 


Draw, 


drew, 


drawn. 


Dream, 


dreamed, dreamt, 


dreamed, dreamt. 


Drink, 


drank, 


drunk. 


Drive, 


drove, 


driven. 


Dwell, 


dwelled, dwelt, 


dwelled, dwelt. 


Eat, 


eat, ate, 


eat, eaten. 


Fall, 


fell, 


fallen. 


Feed, 


fed, 


fed. 


Feel, 


felt, 


felt. 


Fight, 


fought, 


fought. 


Find, 


found, 


found. 


Flee, 


fled, 


fled. 


Fling, 


flung, 


flung. 


Fly, 


flew, 


flown. 


Forsake, 


forsook, 


forsaken. 


Freeze, 


froze, 


frozen. 


Get, 


got, 


got, gotten. 


Gild, 


gilded, gilt. 


gilded, gilt. 


Gird, 


girded, girt, 


girded, girt. 


Give, 


gave, 


given. 


5 


D 





50 



ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 



Present. 


Past. 


Past Part. 


Go, 


went, 


gone. 


Grave, 


graved, 


graven, graved. 


Grind, 


ground, 


ground. 


Grow, 


grew, 


grown. 


Hang, 


hanged, hung, 


hanged, hung. 


Have, 


had, 


had. 


Hear, 


heard, 


heard. 


Heave, 


heaved, hove, 


heaved. 


Hew, 


hewed, 


hewed, hewn. 


Hide, 


hid, 


hid, hidden. 


Hit, 


hit, 


hit. 


Hold, 


held, 


held. 


Hurt, 


hurt, 


hurt. 


Keep, 


kept, 


kept. 


Kneel, 


kneeled, knelt, 


kneeled, knelt. 


Knit, 


knit, knitted, 


knit, knitted. 


Know, 


knew, 


known. 


Lade, 


laded, 


laded, laden. 


Lay, 


laid, 


laid. 


Lead, 


led, 


led. 


Leave, 


left, 


left. 


Lend, 


lent, 


lent. 


Let, 


let, 


let. 


Lie (to recline), 


lay, 


lain. 


Light, 


lighted, lit, 


lighted, lit. 


Lose, 


lost, 


lost. 


Make, 


made, 


made. 


Mean, 


meant, 


meant. 


Meet, 


met, 


met. 


Mow, 


mowed, 


mowed, mown. 


Pay, 


paid, 


paid. 


Pen (to coop) y 


penned, pent, 


penned, pent. 


Put, 


put, 


put. 


Quit, 


quit, quitted, 


quit, quitted. 


Read, 


read, 


read. 


Rend, 


rent, 


rent. 


Rid, 


rid, ridded, 


rid, ridded. 


Ride, 


rode, 


ridden. 



ETYMOLOGY 



51 



Present. 


Past. 


Past Part. 


Ring, 


rang, rung, 


rung. 


Rise, 


rose, 


risen. 


Rive, 


rived, 


rived, riven. 


Run, 


ran, run, 


run. 


Say, 


said. 


said. 


Saw, 


sawed, 


sawed, sawn. 


See, 


saw. 


seen. 


Seek, 


sought, 


sought. 


Seethe, 


seethed, 


seethed, sodden, 


Sell, 


sold, 


sold. 


Send, 


sent, 


sent. 


Set, 


set. 


set. 


Shake, 


shook, 


shaken. 


Shape, 


shaped, 


shaped, shapen. 


Shave, 


shaved, 


shaved, shaven. 


Shear, 


sheared, 


sheared, shorn. 


Shed, 


shed. 


shed. 


Shine, 


shone, shined, 


shone, shined. 


Shoe, 


shod, 


shod. 


Shoot, 


shot, 


shot. 


Show, 


showed, 


shown, showed. 


Shred, 


shred, 


shred. 


Shrink, 


shrunk, 


shrunk. 


Shut, 


shut, 


shut. 


Sing, 


sung, sang, 


sung. 


Sink, 


sunk, sank, 


sunk. 


Sit, 


sat. 


sat. 


Slay, 


slew, 


slain. 


Sleep, 


slept, 


slept. 


Slide, 


slid, 


slid, slidden. 


Sling, 


slung, 


slung. 


Slink, 


slunk. 


slunk. 


Slit, 


slit, slitted. 


slit, slitted. 


Smell, 


smelled, smelt, 


smelled. smelt. 


Smite, 


smote. 


smitten, smit. 


Sow, 


sowed. 


sowed, sown. 


Speak, 


spoke, spake, 


spoken. 


Speed, 


sped, speeded, 


sped, speeded. 



52 



ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 



Present. 


Past. 


Past Part. 


Spell, 


spelled, spelt, 


spelled, spelt. 


Spend, 


spent, 


spent. 


Spill, 


spilled, spilt, 


spilled, spilt. 


Spin, 


spun, 


spun. 


Spit, 


spit, spat, 


spit. 


Split, 


split, splitted, 


split, splitted. 


Spoil, 


spoiled, spoilt, 


spoiled, spoilt. 


Spread, 


spread, 


spread. 


Spring, 


sprung, sprang, 


sprung. 


Stand, 


stood, 


stood. 


Stave, 


staved, stove, 


staved, stove. 


Stay, 


stayed, staid, 


stayed, staid. 


Steal, 


stole, 


stolen. 


Stick, 


stuck, 


stuck. 


Sting, 


stung, 


stung. 


Stink, 


stunk, 


stunk. 


Strew, 


strewed, 


strewed, strewn. 


Stride, 


strid, strode, 


strid, stridden. 


Strike, 


struck, 


struck, stricken. 


String, 


strung, 


strung. 


Strive, 


strove, 


striven. 


Swear, 


swore, 


sw^orn. 


Sweat, 


sweat, sweated, 


sweat, sweated. 


Sweep, 


swept, 


swept. 


Swell, 


swelled, 


swelled, sw r ollen. 


Swim, 


swam, swum, 


swum. 


Swing, 


swung, 


swung. 


Take, 


took, 


taken. 


Teach, 


taught, 


taught. 


Tear, 


tore, 


torn. 


Tell, 


told, 


told. 


Think, 


thought, 


thought. 


Thrive, 


thrived, 


thrived, thriven. 


Throw, 


threw, 


thrown. 


Thrust, 


thrust, 


thrust. 


Tread, 


trod, 


trod, trodden. 


Wax, 


waxed, 


t waxed, waxen. 


Wear, 


wore, 


worn. 



ETYMOLOGY. 



53 



Present. 


Past. 


Past Part. 


Weave, 


wove, 


woven, wove. 


Weep, 


wept, 


wept. 


Wet, 


wet, wetted, 


wet, wetted. 


Win, 


won, 


won. 


Wind, 


wound, 


wound. 


Work, 


worked, wrought, 


worked, wrou 


Wring, 


wrung, 


wrung. 


Write, 


wrote, 


written. 



III. IMPERSONAL VERBS. 

An Impersonal Verb is one which is never used 
except with the pronoun it for its subject ; as, " It 
snows" 

Note.— We never say, " I snow," " Thou snowest," " He snows," etc. 
IV. DEFECTIVE VERBS. 

A Defective Verb is one that is not used in all 
the Moods and Tenses ; as, must, ought, quoth, etc. 



V. AUXILIARY VERBS. 

An Auxiliary Verb is one which helps to form the 
Moods and Tenses of other verbs. 

The auxiliary verbs are, shall, may, can, must, be, 
do, have, and will. 

Remarks on the Auxiliary Verbs. 

1. These are called Auxiliary, or helping verbs, because by 
their help the other verbs form most of their moods and tenses. 

2. Be, do, have, and sometimes will, are also used as principal 
verbs ; as, they may oe here ; they do nothing ; they have noth- 
ing ; they will it to be so. As principal verbs, they have all the 
moods and tenses which other verbs have. 

3. Be, as an Auxiliary, is used in all its moods, tenses, num- 

5* 



54 



ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 



bers, and persons, in forming the passive voice of other verbs; 
as, I am loved, I was loved, I have ~been loved, etc. 

III. CONJUGATION. 

The Conjugation of a verb is the orderly arrange- 
ment of its voices, moods, tenses, numbers, and per- 
sons. 

Mote. — The verb "To Be" is irregular and intransitive, and 
has no voice. 



Conjugation of the verb To Be* 
INDICATIVE MOOD. 



Singular, 

1. I am. 

2. Thou art 
8. He is. 



Singular. 

1. I was. 

2. Thou wast* 

3. He was. 



Singular. 

1. I shall be. 

2. Thou wilt be. 

3. He will be. 



Present Tense. 

Plural. 

1. We are. 

2. You are. 

3. They are. 

Past Tense. 

Plural. 

1. We were. 

2. You were. 

3. They were. 

Future Tense, 

Plural. 

1. We shall be. 

2. You will be. 

3. They will be. 



Present- Perfect Tense. 
Singular. Plural. 

1. I have been. 1. We have been. 

2. Thou hast been. 2. You have been. 

3. He has been. 3. They have been. 



Etymology. 



55 



Past- Perfect Tense. 

Plural. 

1. I had been. 1. We had been. 

2. Thou hadst been. 2. You had been. 

3. He had been. 3. They had been. 

Future- Perfect Tense. 
Singular. Plural. 

1. I shall have been. 1. We shall have been. 

2. Thou wilt have been. 2. You will have been. 

3. He will have been. 3. They will have been. 



SUBJUNCTIVE MOOD. 
Present Tense. 



1. 

2. 
3. 


Singular. 
If I be. 
If thou be. 
If he be. 


Plural. 

1. If we be. 

2. If you be. 

3. If they be. 


1. 

2. 
3. 


Singular. 
If I were. 
If thou wert. 
If he were. 


Past Tense. 

Plural. 

1. If we were. 

2. If you were. 

3. If they were. 



Singular. 

1. I may be. 

2. Thou inayst be, 

3. He may be. 



POTENTIAL MOOD. 

Present Tense. - 

Plural. 

1. We may be. 

2. You may be. 

3. They may be. 



Singular. 

1. I might be. 

2. Thou mightst be. 

3. He might be* 



Past Tense. 

Plural. 

1. We might be. 

2. You might be. 

3. They might be. 



56 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

Present-Perfect Tense. 
Singular. Plural. 

1. I may have been. 1. We may have been. 

2. Thou mayst have been. 2. You may have been. 

3. He may have been. 3. They may have been. 

Past-Perfect Tense. 
Singular. Plural. 

1. I might have been. 1. We might have been. 

2. Thou mightst have been. 2. You might have been. 

3. He might have been. 3. They might have been. 

IMPERATIVE MOOD. 

Present Tense. 
Singular. Plural. 

2. Be, or be thou. 2. Be, or be you. 

INFINITIVE MOOD. 
Present. To be. Present- Perfect. To have been. 

PARTICIPLES. 
Present. Being. Past or Perfect. Been. 

Compound- Perfect. Having been. 

Remarks on the Conjugation. 

1. In the formation of the Futures, we have two Auxiliaries, 
shall and will. For the expression of simple futurity, we use 
shall in the First Person, and will in the Second and Third Per- 
sons, as given in the table. On the other hand, by using will in 
the First Person, and shall in the Second and Third Persons, we 
express the various ideas of promise, command, obligation, etc. 
Thus: "I will be there" expresses a promise. "Thou shalt love 
the Lord thy God" is a command. "He shall do it" (i. e. I will 
make him) expresses obligation or necessity. 

2. The singular form, thou art, etc., is now used only in acts 
of worship, or on other solemn occasions. In ordinary discourse, 



ETYMOLOGY. 



57 



in addressing one person, we say you are, you were, etc., the 
meaning being singular, but the form plural. 

3. In the third person, the nominative of the verb may be any 
of the personal pronouns, he, she, it, any of the relative pro- 
nouns, who, which, what, that, etc., or any noun. For conven- 
ience of recitation, one nominative only is inserted. 

4. In the Potential mood the auxiliary may be, 
In the Present tense, may, can, or must ; 

In the Past tense, might, could, would, or should ; 

In the Present-Perfect tense, may have, can ham, or must have; 

In the Past-Perfect tense, might have, could have, would have, 
or should have. 



Conjugation of the verb To Love. 

I. ACTIVE VOICE. 



Singular. 

1. I love. 

2. Thou lovest. 

3. He loves. 



INDICATIVE MOOD. 

Present Tense. 

Plural. 

1. We love. 

2. You love. 

3. They love. 



Singular. 

1. I loved. 

2. Thoulovedst. 

3. He loved. 



Past Tense. 

Plural. 

1. We loved. 

2. You loved. 

3. They loved. 



Singular. 

1. I shall love. 

2. Thou wilt love. 

3. He will love. 



Future Tense. 

Plural. 

1. We shall love. 

2. You will love. 

3. They will love. 



58 



ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 



Present- Perfect Tense. 
Singular. Plural. 

1. I have loved. 1. We have loved. 

2. Thou hast loved. 2. You have loved. 

3. He has loved. 3. They have loved. 

Past-Perfect Tense. 
Singular. Plural. 

1. I had loved. 1. We had loved. 

2. Thou hadst loved. 2. You had loved. 

3. He had loved. 3. They had loved. 

Future- Perfect Tense. 
Singular. Plural. 

1. I shall have loved. 1. We shall have loved. 

2. Thou wilt have loved. 2. You will have loved. 

3. He will have loved. 3. They will have loved. 



Singular. 

1. If I love. 

2. If thou love. 

3. If he love. 



SUBJUNCTIVE MOOD. 

Present Tense. 

Plural. 

1. If we love. 

2. If you love. 

3. If they love. 



Singular. 

1. If I loved. 

2. If thou loved. 

3. If he loved. 



Past Tense. 

Plural. 

1. If we loved. 

2. If you loved. 

3. If they loved. 



Singular. 

1. I may love. 

2. Thou mayst love. 

3. He may love. 



POTENTIAL MOOD. 

Present Tense. 



Plural. 

1. We may love. 

2. You may love. 
8, They may love. 



ETYMOLOGY. 59 

Past Tense, 
Singular. Plural. 

1. I might love. 1. We might love. 

2. Thou niightst love. 2. You might love. 

3. He might love. 3. They might love. 

Present- Perfect Tense. 
Singular. Plural. 

1. I may have loved. 1. We may have loved. 

2. Thou mayst have loved. 2. You may have loved. 

3. He may have loved. 3. They may have loved. 

Past-Perfect Tense. 
Singular. Plural. 

1. I might have loved. 1. We might have loved. 

2. Thou mightst have loved. 2. You might have loved. 

3. He might have loved. 3. They might have loved. 

IMPERATIVE MOOD^ 

Present Tense. 

Singular. Plural. 

Love, or love thou. Love, or love you. 

INFINITIVE MOOD. 
Present. To love. Present- Perfect. To have loved. 

PARTICIPLES. 

Present. Loving. Past or Perfect. Loved. 

Compound- Perfect. Having loved. 

II. PASSIVE VOICE. 

Note. — The Passive Voice of a verb is formed by placing 
before its Past Participle the various moods, tenses, numbers, and 
persons of the verb To le* 

Intransitive Verbs have no Passive Voice. 



60 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 





INDICATIVE MOOD. 






Present Tense. 




Singular. 


Plural. 


1. 


I am loved. 


1. We are loved. 


2. 


Thou art loved. 


2. You are loved. 


3. 


He is loved. 


3. They are loved. 
Past Tense. 




Singular. 


Plural. 


1. 


I was loved. 


1. We were loved. 


2. 


Thou wast loved. 


2. You were loved. 


3. 


He was loved. 


3. They were loved. 
Future Tense. 




Singular. 


Plural. 


1. 


I shall be loved. 


1. We shall be loved. 


2. 


Thou wilt be loved. 


2. You will be loved. 


3. 


He will be loved. 


3. They will be loved. 



Present- Perfect Tense. 
Singular. .Plural. 

1. I have been loved. 1. We have been loved, 

2. Thou hast been loved. 2. You have been loved. 

3. He has been loved. 3. They have been loved. 

Past- Perfect Tense. 
Singular. Plural. 

1. I had been loved. 1. We had been loved. 

2. Thou hadst been loved. 2. You had been loved. 

3. He had been loved. 3. They had been loved. 

Future- Perfect Tense. 
Singular. Plural. 

1. I shall have been loved. 1. We shall have been loved. 

2. Thou wilt have been loved. 2. You will have been loved. 

3. He will have been loved. 3. They will have been loved. 



ETYMOLOGY. 



61 



Singular. 

1. If I be loved. 

2. If thou be loved. 

3. If he be loved. 



SUBJUNCTIVE MOOD. 

Present Tense. 

Plural. 

1. If we be loved. 

2. If you be loved. 

3. If they be loved. 



Singular. 

1. If I were loved. 

2. If thou wert loved. 

3. If he were loved. 



Past Tense. 

Plural. 

1. If we were loved. 

2. If you were loved. 

3. If they were loved. 



POTENTIAL MOOD. 

Present Tense. 



Singular. 

1. I may be loved. 

2. Thou mayst be loved. 

3. He may be loved. 



Plural. 

1. We may be loved. 

2. You may be loved. 

3. They may be loved. 



Singular. 

1. I might be loved. 

2. Thou mightst be loved. 

3. He might be loved. 



Past Tense. 

Plural. 

1. We might be loved. 

2. You might be loved. 

3. They might be loved. 



Present- Perfect Tense. 
Singular. Plural. 

1. I may have been loved. 1. We may have been loved. 

2. Thou mayst have been loved. 2. You may have been loved. 

3. He may have been loved. 3. They may have been loved. 



Past-Perfect Tense. 
Singular. Plural. 

1. I might have been loved. 1. We might have been loved. 

2. Thou mightst have been loved. 2. You might have been loved. 

3. He might have been loved. 3. They might have been loved. 

6 



62 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

IMPERATIVE MOOD. 
Present Tense. 
2. Be loved, or be thou loved. 2. Be loved, or be you loved. 

INFINITIVE MOOD. 
Present. To be loved. Present- Perfect. To have been loved. 

PARTICIPLES. 

Present. Being loved. Past or Perfect. Loved. 

Compound- Perfect. Having been loved. 

Exercises in Conjugation. 
Conjugate the verb 

Come, in the Active voice, Indicative mood, Present tens^. 
Do, in the Active voice, Potential mood, Present-Perfect tense. 
Walk, in the Active voice, Subjunctive mood, Future tense. 
Know, in the Passive voice, Indicative mood, Future-Perfect 
tense. 

Leave, in the Passive voice, Potential mood, Past-Perfect tense. 
Tell, in the Passive voice, Subjunctive mood, Past tense. 

The teacher can furnish additional exercises at will. 

Name all the Participles of the verb come. 
Name in like manner all the Participles of each of the other 
verbs in the foregoing list. 

Note. — If the verb is Transitive, remember to name the Participles 
in the Passive Voice, as well as in the Active. 

III. PROGRESSIVE FORM. 

The Progressive Form of a verb is that which, 
represents the action as in progress, or incomplete. 

The Progressive form of any verb is made by placing before 



ETYMOLOGY. 63 

its Present Participle the various moods, tenses, numbers, and 
persons of the verb to be. 

Example. — The Present tense of the Indicative mood of the 
verb to be is — 

I am. We are. 

Thou art. You are. 

He is. They are. 

By placing- the above before the Present Participle of the 
verb to sing, which is singing, we have, 

I am singing, 

Thou art singing, &c. 

This is the Present tense, Indicative mood, Progressive form, 
of the verb to sing. 

Exercises in the Progressive Form. 

Conjugate the verb "sing" through all the tenses of the In- 
dicative mood, in the Progressive form. 

Conjugate " learn" through the Subjunctive mood, Progressive 
form. 

Conjugate " write " through the Potential mood, Progressive 
form. 

Conjugate " stand " through the Imperative and Infinitive 
moods, Progressive form. 

Note. — A verb in the Progressive form is always in the Active voice. 
IV. EMPHATIC FORM. 

The Emphatic Form of a verb is that in which 
the assertion is expressed with emphasis. 

The Emphatic Form of a verb is made by placing before it the 
verb do as an auxiliary. 

The Emphatic Form is used only in the Present and Past 
tenses of the Indicative and Subjunctive moods, Active voice, 
and in the Imperative mood, both Active and Passive. 



64 



ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 



Conjugation of the verb To Love, in the Em- 
phatic Form. 

INDICATIVE MOOD. 

Present Tense. 



Singular. 

1. I do love. 

2. Thou dost love. 

3. He does love. 



Plural. 

1. We do love. 

2. You do love. 

3. They do love. 



Singular. 

1. I did love. 

2. Thou didst love. 

3. He did love. 



Past Tense. 

Plural. 

1. We did love. 

2. You did love. 

3. They did love. 



SUBJUNCTIVE MOOD. 

Present Tense. 



Singular. 

1. If I do love. 

2. If thou do love. 

3. If he do love. 



Plural. 

1. If we do love. 

2. If you do love. 

3. If they do love. 



Singular. 

1. If I did love. 

2. If thou did love. 

3. If he did love. 



Past Tense. 

Plural. 

1. If we did love. 

2. If you did love. 

3. If they did love. 



IMPERATIVE. 

Active — Present Tense. 
Singular. Do (thou) love. Plural. Do (you) love. 

Passive — Present Tense. 
Singular. Do (thou) he loved. Plural. Do (you) he loved. 



ETYMOLOGY. 65 

Parsing Exercises. 

Parse "writes" in the sentence, "James writes a letter." 

Model. — "Writes" (1) is a verb, it contains an assertion; (2) 
transitive, it requires an objective case after it; (3) irregular, it 
does not form its past tense and past participle by the addition 
of ed (Pres. write, Past wrote, Past Part, written) ; (4) active 
voice, it denotes that the nominative " James" acts or does the 
thing mentioned; (5) indicative mood, the assertion is expressed 
directly and without limitation; (6) present tense, it denotes 
present time; (7) singular number, third person (I write, thou 
writest, he writes, or James writes); (8) and has for its subject 
the noun James. 

Abbreviated Model. — "Writes" is (1) a transitive verb, (2) 
irregular (Pres. write, Past wrote, Past Part, written), (3) active 
voice, (4) indicative mood, (5) present tense, (6) singular num- 
ber, third person, (7) and has for its subject the noun James. 

Parse "to win" in the sentence, "James expects to win the 
prize." 

Model. — "To win" is (1) a transitive verb, (2) irregular 
(Pres. win, Past won, Past Part, won), (3) active voice, (4) infin- 
itive mood, (5) present tense. 

Note. — The Infinitive Mood has no subject, hence it has no number 
nor person. 

Parse " is writing" in the sentence, " James is writing a letter." 
Model. — "Is writing" is (1) a transitive verb, (2) irregular 
(Pres. write, Past wrote, Past Part, written), (3) progressive 
form, (4) active voice, (5) indicative mood, (6) present tense, 
(7) singular number, third person, (8) and has for its subject the 
noun James. 

Parse "did write" in the sentence, "James did write the 
letter." 

Model. — "Did write" is (1) a transitive verb, (2) irregular 

(Pres. write, Past wrote, Past Part, written), (3) emphatic form, 

(4) active voice, (5) indicative mood, (6) past tense, (7) singular 

number, third person, (8) and has for its subject the noun James. 

6* E 



66 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

Parse "was written" in the sentence, " The letter was written 
by John." 

Model. — "Was written" is (1) a transitive verb, (2) irregular 
(Pres. write, Past wrote, Past Part, written), (3) passive voice, 
(4) indicative mood, (5) past tense, (6) singular number, third 
person, (7) and has for its subject the noun letter. 

Note 1. — Intransitive Verbs are not used in the Passive Voice, hence, 
it will not be necessary to state the voice in parsing Intransitive Verbs. 

Note 2. — In parsing Regular Verbs, the Present, Past, and Past 
Participle forms of the verb need not be given. 

Parse all the verbs in the following sentences : 

Mary loves her mother. 

Charles lent his book to his brother. 

George has studied his lesson. 

Henry had studied his lessons before the teacher arrived. 

I shall have finished my task before my father returns. 

Charles will read his book. 

If John study, he will improve. 

Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him. 

Unless you hurry, you will be left. 

The boys may go into the woods to play. 

William could attend to the business for you, if he were here. 

The soldiers must obey the orders of their officers. 

You must study, if you desire to exceh 

Pity the sorrows of a poor old man. 

Fear God and keep his commandments. 

Mary is loved by her friends. 

The teacher was respected by his pupiiS. 

The lesson has been recited by each member of the class. 

You will be promoted, if you persevere in your endeavor to 
improve. 

The prisoner will be brought before the judge, to-morrow, to 
hear his sentence. 



ETYMOLOGY. 67 

Be industrious, and you will succeed. 

Be studious, and you will improve. 

Charles is studying his lesson. 

The boys are hunting for rabbits in the woods. 

If he were more attentive, he might have escaped the punish- 
ment, which, he thought, was so grievous to be borne. 

When the mail shall have arrived, I will send immediately for 
my letters ; and I will send replies to them by the next mail. 

Charles had sufficient time to study his lesson before he was 
called to his breakfast. William appears to have' studied his les- 
son, and to have had time for exercise. 

I have not seen my dictionary ; do tell me where it is, if you 
know. I did not use it at home. I cannot learn my lesson with- 
out it. Somebody must have hidden it to vex me. Ask the 
maid ; perhaps she put it away. I will take care, to-morrow, to 
put it in the closet before I go out to play. 

If it were raining while you were walking to the city, you 
should have carried your umbrella, or you should have waited 
under some shelter until the rain had ceased. Be more prudent, 
or you may impair your health. 

Note. — In the preceding sentence it is used indefinitely. See page 31. 

Review Exercise. — Parse all the Nouns in the foregoing sen- 
tences. 

Parse all the Articles. 

Parse all the Adjectives. 

Parse all the Pronouns. 

Exercises in Participles. 

Select the Participles in the following exercises, state which 
are Active and which Passive, and state also whether they are 
Present, Past or Perfect, or Compound Perfect. 

The child, seeing its mother, ran to meet her. 

Mary, walking in the woods, found a beautiful fern. 

The snow, falling rapidly, soon covered the ground. 



68 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

A man deserving blame should be censured. 

Washington died honored by all his countrymen. 

The house, destroyed by fire, was soon rebuilt. 

The laborer, fatigued with the toil of the day, returned to his 
home. 

The exercise written by Charles was admired by all. 

The boys, having recited their lessons, were dismissed. 

The thief, having stolen the horse, made his escape. 

John, having written his composition, gave it to the teacher. 

The sun having risen, the clouds disappeared. 

The general, being advised of the approach of the enemy, 
ordered his troops into line of battle. 

The father being informed of his son's death, exhibited great 
sorrow. 

Charles, being aroused from his slumber, discovered that the 
house was on fire. 

The day being far spent, we returned to our homes. 

The lesson having been recited, the class was dismissed. 

The fire having been extinguished, the crowd dispersed. 

War having been declared, the regiments were rapidly mustered 
into service. 

The physician having been called, pronounced it a hopeless 
case. 

He had a dagger concealed under his coat. 

Honor, defined by Cicero, is the approbation of good men. 

William, being successful in his examination, expects promo- 
tion. 

William, having been successful in his examination, was pro- 
moted. 

William, having succeeded in his examination, expects to be 
promoted. 

The fire breaking out in the night, and the night being dark, 
the house was destroyed, the inmates barely escaping with their 



ETYMOLOGY. 69 

lives, with their clothing scorched, and some with limhs broken 
or bodies mutilated. 

Thomas being employed at his studies, could not engage in the 
sports of the younger members of the family: but. having com- 
pleted his lessons, he looked on their sports delighted, and joined 
in them with pleasure. 

Having been informed that the enemy Tvas approaching, and 
being without arms, the general ordered his men to prepare to re- 
treat to a place concealed from the enemy's view, lest the enemy, 
seeing their defenceless condition, should make an easy conquest. 

Write three sentences containing a Present Participle, Active ; 
three, Compound-Perfect. Active; three. Present-Passive; three, 
Perfect-Passive ; three. Compound-Perfect Passive. 

Models for Parsing. 

Parse "seeing" in the sentence, k, The child, seeing its mother, 
ran to meet her.*' 

"Seeing" is (1) the Present Participle. (2) Active. (3) of the 

irregular, transitive verb "to see.'" (Pres. see. Past saw. Past, 
Part, seen.) 

Parse "having recited" in the sentence, "The boys having re- 
cited their lessons, were dismissed." 

"Having recited " is (1) the Compound Perfect-Participle, (2) 
Active, (3) of the regular, transitive verb "to recite.'' 

Parse all the Participles in the exercises on pages 67. 68 and 69. 

As the Participle is a part of the verb, it may have a noun 
after it in the objective case in the same manner as the verb has; 
thus, "John having written a letter, took it to the Post-office." 
Here "letter" is in the objective case, and is the object of the 
Participle " having written." 

In the exercises on pages 67. 68 and 69, select and parse all 
nouns in the objective case. 
Parse all the Pronouns. 
Parse all the Adjectives, 
Parse all the Verbs. 



70 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

VI. ADVERBS. 

An Adverb is a word used to qualify a Verb, an 
Adjective, or another Adverb; as, He writes rapidly. 

Explanation. — An Adverb, when used to qualify a verb, generally 
shows how, when, or where some action takes place. 

Exercises. — In the sentence, "The industrious boy recites 
rapidly, 1 ' which word is a noun? Which is a verb? Which 
word qualifies "boy," or tells what kind of boy he is? What 

part of speech is ? What is an adjective? Which word 

qualifies "recites," or tells how he recites? What is ? 

What is an adverb ? Which does qualify here, a verb, 

an adjective, or another adverb? 

In the phrase, "very industrious boy," what part of speech is 
industrious? What word qualifies industrious, or tells how in- 
dustrious he is ? What is ? What is an adverb? Which 

does qualify here, a verb, an adjective, or another 

adverb ? 

In the phrase, "recites very rapidly," what part of speech is 
rapidly ? What word qualifies rapidly, or tells how rapidly he 

recites? What part of speech is ? What is an adverb? 

Which does qualify here, a verb, an adjective, or another 

adverb ? 

Some words are used sometimes as adverbs, and sometimes as 
adjectives. Among these are the following: little, less, least, 
tetter, best, much, more, most, no, only, well, ill, still, first. If 
any of these words qualifies a noun, it is an adjective; but, if it 
qualifies a verb, an adjective, or another adverb, then it is an 
adverb. 

Examples.* — " I have no money, and I can support you no 
longer." The first "no" is an adjective, qualifying "money." 
The second "no" is an adverb, qualifying the adverb "longer." 

" He could not behave worse, nor deserve a worse punishment." 
The first "worse" is an adverb, qualifying the verb "behave." 
The second " w r orse " is an adjective, qualifying the noun "pun- 
ishment." 



ETYMOLOGY. 71 

Comparison of Adverbs. 

Many Adverbs are compared. 

Some Adverbs are compared by adding er and est 
to the Positive ; as, soon, sooner, soonest. 

Adverbs ending in ly are compared by prefixing 
more and most, less and least ; as, happily, more hap- 
pily, most happily ; less happily, least happily. 





Irregular Com 


parison. 




Positive. 




Comparative. 




Superlative. 


Well 




better 




best 


111 




worse 




worst 


Badly 




worse 




worst 


Much 




more 




most 


Far 




farther 




farthest. 



Classes of Adverbs. 

Adverbs are divided into classes, according to their significa- 
tion. The most important of these classes are 

1. Adverbs of Manner or Quality; as, weU, ill swiftly, 

smoothly, truly, with a great many others formed from adjectives 
by adding the termination ly. This is by far the most numerous 
class of adverbs. 

2. Adverbs of Place ; as, here, there, where, hither, thither, 
whither, hence, thence, whence, somewhere, nowJiere, etc. 

3. Adverbs of Time ; as, now, then, when, ever, never, soon, 
often, seldom, lately, yearly, yesterday, to-morrow, etc. 

4. Adverbs of Quantity ; as, much, little, sufficiently, enough, 
scarcely, etc. 

5. Adverbs of Direction ; as, downward, upward, forward, 
backward, homeward, heavenward, hitherward, thitherward, etc. 

6. Adverbs of Number, Order, etc. (including all those 



72 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

formed from the Numeral Adjectives) ; as, first, secondly, thirdly, 
etc. ; once, twice, thrice, etc. ; singly, doubly, triply, etc. 

7. Adverbs of Affirmation and Negation ; as, yes, no, verily, 
indeed, nay, nowise, doubtless, etc. 

8. Adverbs of Interrogation ; as, how, why, when, where, 
whither, ichence, etc. 

9. Adverbs of Comparison ; as, more, most, less, least, better, 
best, very, exceedingly, nearly, almost, etc. 

10. Adverbs of Uncertainty ; as, perchance, perhaps, perad- 
venture, possibly, probably, etc. 

Note. — The above is not intended as a complete list of Adverbs, nor 
even a complete classification of them. It will be found serviceable, 
however, for the learner in this way. When in doubt about the true 
character of a word, whether to call it an adverb or not, the doubt is 
often immediately resolved by attempting to refer the word to one of 
these classes. Does the word express place t Does it signify time f etc. 

Write three sentences, each containing an adverb of Manner 
or Quality; three, each containing an adverb of Place; three, 
each containing an adverb of Time; three, each containing an 
adverb of Comparison. 

Parsing Exercises. 

Parse "hastily" in the sentence, "John wrote the letter 
hastily." 

Model. — " Hastily " (1) is an adverb, it qualifies the verb 
"wrote; " (2) it is an adverb of manner, it tells the manner in 
which he wrote; (3) it is compared, hastily, more hastily, most 
hastily. 

Note. — When the adverb does not admit of comparison, the third 
thing to say of it will be, " not compared." 

Parse all the Adverbs in the following sentences : 

Cherish me kindly, cheer my young heart, 
I will follow thee ever and never depart. 



ETYMOLOGY. 73 

Charles reads well. 

Mary sang sweetly. 

The horse runs swiftly. 

He was to meet me here. 

Great men are greatly admired. 

Thus the farmer sows his seed. 

The lady sang so very sweetly that she was greatly applauded. 

Kememher now thy Creator in the days of thy youth. 

John knows where to catch the largest fish. 

I know a spot where the wild rose blooms. 

We had scarcely reached the wharf when the boat left. 

The boys will return from school to-morrow. 

Mary will probably arrive promptly. 

Softly, slowly, toll the bell. 

He will certainly secure the reward. 

Probably he will return in time. 

He was absent twice in one week. 

We had nearly reached our destination when the sun set. 

Perhaps the excursion will be postponed. 

You must write more carefully; you are the least careful 
writer in the class. 

You will recite first the first paragraph on the first page. 

How can you behave so badly ? 

Why do you neglect your duty ? 

The farmer homeward turned his weary steps, and cast his 
eyes upward to gaze upon the sky, while he thought cheerfully 
of those at home. 

Review Exercise. — Parse all the Nouns in the foregoing 
sentences. 

Parse all the Pronouns. 

Parse all the Verbs. 

Parse all the Adjectives. 

7 



74 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

VII. CONJUNCTIONS. 

A Conjunction is a word used to connect words, 
sentences, and parts of sentences ; as, Jolm and James 
study ; John writes and James reads. 

The following are the principal Conjunctions : 



Also 


but 


nor 


therefore 


Although 


either 


or 


though 


And 


for 


since 


unless 


As 


if 


than 


wherefore 


Because 


lest 


that 


whether 


Both 


neither 


then 


yet 



Write five sentences, each containing a Conjunction. 

Parsing Exercises. 
Parse "and" in the sentence, "John and James are brothers." 
First Model. — "And " is a conjunction, it connects the noun 
"John" with the noun "James." 

Note. — When conjunctions connect words, those words will 
be the same parts of speech, that is a verb and a verb, an adjec- 
tive and an adjective, etc., except that nouns and pronouns may 
be connected by a conjunction. 

Second Model. — "John studies his lesson carefully, hut James 
is very negligent of his lesson. 1 ' "But" is a conjunction, it con- 
nects the sentence "John studies his lesson carefully,' 1 with the 
sentence "James is very negligent of his lesson." 

Exercises. — Parse each of the Conjunctions in the following 
sentences : 

Mary and John have gone to town. 
John and James study. 
James writes and John reads. 

Charles studies his lessons carefully, but John is very negligent 
with his lessons. 



ETYMOLOGY. 75 

The boy wrote well, though his hands were badly injured. 
He supported his mother, though he was quite young. 
I cannot go to school, because the weather is so bad. 
It is so dark that I cannot see. 

Review Exercise. — Parse each of the Nouns, Adjectives, 
Pronouns, Verbs, and Adverbs in the foregoing sentences. 



oj^^o 



VIII. PREPOSITIONS. 

A Preposition is a word placed before a noun or 
pronoun to show its relation to some other word ; as, 
I write with a pen. 

There are two classes of Prepositions, Simple and Compound, 
Simple Prepositions are those which are not compounded with 

any other word. 

The Simple Prepositions generally assist in determining the 

place or position of a person or thing. 

Example. — "John went on the roof, and found his ball in the 
gutter." "On" shows the place of "John," and "in" the place 
where the ball was found. 

The Simple Prepositions are nineteen, viz. : 



At 


from 


past 


to 


After 


in 


round 


under 


By 


of 


since 


up 


Down 


on 


through 


with 


For 


over 


till 





Compound Prepositions are those which are formed by uniting 
two words or parts of words. 



76 


ELEMENTARY 


GRAMMAR. 




The Compound Prepositions are 






Above 




before 




toward 


About 




behind 




towards 


Across 




below 




unto 


Against 




beneath 




into 


Along 




beside 




within 


Amid or \ 


amidst 


besides 




without 


Among or amongst 


between 


or betwixt 


throughout 


Around 




beyond 




underneath 


Athwart 




upon 







Write five sentences, each containing a Simple Preposition; 
^ve, each containing a Compound Preposition. 

Parsing Exercises. 

Parse "on " in the sentence, "John walks on the roof." 

Model. — " On " is a preposition, it is placed before the noun 
roof; and it shows a relation between "roof" and walks," it 
tells on what he walks. 

Parse each of the Prepositions in the following sentences: 

John went to Boston on the boat. 

The old mill stood beside the road. 

The city of Philadelphia is situated between two rivers. 

He went in a carriage, drawn by two horses, on a fine day in the 
morning, into the city after his sister. As he rode over the roads 
and through the streets, he saw objects before him with which 
he was greatly pleased. 

When the widow stood beside the grave of her husband, she 
thought over his many acts of kindness towards her. Now he 
was to rest beneath the clods of the valley, and she was to be 
left without a partner. The good minister told her to look for 
comfort in her affliction unto her heavenly Father, and to think 
of that blissful abode above the weary world, and of that better 
life beyond the grave. , 

Review Exercise. — Parse all the other words in the fore- 
going sentences. 



ETYMOLOGY. 77 

IX. INTERJECTIONS. 

An Interjection is a word used in making sudden 
exclamations ; as, ah ! oh ! 

The principal Interjections are, 



Adieu 


ha 


hist 


lo 


Ah 


hail 


ho 





Aha 


halloo 


hum 


oh 


Alack 


hark 


hush 


pshaw 


Alas 


he 


huzza 


see 


Begone 









Parsing Exercises. 

In parsing an Interjection, simply state that it is an Interjec- 
tion. 
Name the Interjections in the following sentences. 
Alas! I have lost my friend. 
" Oh ! " exclaimed the child, when he was struck. 
u, Ha! ha! " replied his sister, "it serves you right." 
"Fie! " said their mother, "this is not the proper spirit. 1 ' 
Write five sentences, each containing an interjection. 

WORDS USED AS DIFFERENT PARTS OF 
SPEECH. 

As, meaning because, or since, is a Conjunction. Ex. As the 
wind was favorable, we set sail. It is also a part of the 
Correlative Conjunction as — so, and of several Complex 
Conjunctions, as well as, etc. 
As, in all other cases, is an Adverb. 

Befoee, After, Till, and Until, when followed by a noun or a 
pronoun in the objective case, are Prepositions. Ex. : 
Come he/ore dinner. 
Come after dinner. 
Wait till midnight. 
Wait until your turn. 
7* 



78 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

Before, After, Till, and Until, when not followed by a noun 
or a pronoun in the objective case, are Adverbs. Ex. : 
Come before I have dined. 
Come after I have dined. 
Wait till I have dined. 
Wait until I have dined. 

Both is an Adjective, when it means the two. Ex. Both shoes 
need mending. 

Both is a Conjunction in all other cases. Ex. I both love and 

respect him. 
But is a Preposition, when it means except. Ex. He lost all his 

books but (except) his dictionary. 
But is an Adverb, when it means only. Ex. I but (only) touched 

him and he cried. 
But is a Conjunction in all other instances. 

Either is a Distributive Adjective Pronoun, when it means one 
of the tico. Ex. Either of the boys may do it. 

Either is a Conjunction in all other cases. 

Neither is a Distributive Adjective Pronoun, when it means not 
one of the two. 

Neither is a Conjunction in all other cases. 

For is a Conjunction, when it means because, and is used in giv- 
ing a reason. Ex. I obey him, for he is my father, that 
is, because He is my father. 

For is a Preposition in all other cases. 

Since, meaning for the reason that, is a Conjunction. Ex. Since 
it is your wish, I will certainly do it. 

Since, when placed before a noun denoting a period of time, is a 
Preposition. Ex. I have had no food since Monday. 

Since, in other cases, is an Adverb. 

Then, meaning in that case, or therefore, is a Conjunction. Ex. 
If all this be so, then I am right. 

Then, in all other instances, is an Adverb. 



ETYMOLOGY. 79 

That is a Eelative Pronoun, when who, whom, or which may be 

used in its place. Ex. He is the wisest man that lives in 

our village. 
That is a Demonstrative Adjective Pronoun, when the may be 

used instead of it. Ex. "That house which I see," means 

"the house which I see." 
TnAT is a Conjunction in all other cases. Ex. He wears warm 

clothes that he may not catch cold. Here, who, whom, 

which, or the, could not be used for that. 
What is a Relative Pronoun, when that which or those which can 

be used in its stead. Ex. Eat ichat is set before you. 

That is, Eat that whicli is set before you. 
What is an Interrogative Pronoun, when used to ask a question. 

Ex. What do you see ? 
What is an Adjective Pronoun, when joined with a noun, but 

not asking a question. Ex. What wonders he performed. 

He gave what money he had to the poor. 
What, when uttered as a mere exclamation, and to denote sur- 
prise, is an Interjection. Ex. What! abuse your mother! 
While, meaning to 2^ass or spend (time), is a Verb. Ex. They 

managed to while away the hour very pleasantly. 
While, meaning a portion of time, is a Noun. Ex. Let us sing 

a while. 

While, meaning during the time that, is an Adverb. Ex. The 
act was done while I was absent. 

Yet, meaning nevertheless, notwithstanding, is a Conjunction. 
Ex. Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him. 

Yet, meaning up to a certain time, or over and aoove, is an Ad- 
verb. Ex. Has the boy come yet t 
I will give you yet one more reason. 





Third Part. 



oXKo 



SYNTAX. 

The third part of Grammar is called Syntax. 

Syntax treats of sentences. 

A Sentence is a number of words put together so 
as to make complete sense ; as, Man is mortal. 

The principal parts of a sentence are the Subject (or 
nominative) and the Predicate (or verb). 

Sentences are of two kinds, Simple and Compound. 

A Simple sentence is one which contains but one 
subject and one verb; as, Life is short. 

A Compound sentence is one which contains two 
or more sentences, connected by one or more conjunc- 
tions ; as, Life is short, but art is long. 

80 






SYNTAX. 81 

RULE I. 

The Subject of a Verb must be in the Nominative 
Case. 

Explanation. — The subject of the verb is that of which the assertion 
is made. " The book is in the desk." The subject of the assertion here 
is " book." It is that which is asserted to be in the desk. " John and 
I went home." Here there are two subjects, "John" and "I." It is 
of both these we say that they " went home." Now, the subject of the 
verb, that of which anything is asserted, must be in the nominative case. 
It would be contrary to the Rule, therefore, to say, •' John and me went 
home," because " me," one of the subjects, is not in the nominative case. 

NOTES. 

Complex names, such as George Washington, Charles Henry 
Grant, etc., should be taken together in parsing, as if they were 
one word. Thus, we would say, " Charles Henry Grant," a 
complex name, is a proper noun, etc. 

The subject of the verb may be an infinitive mood, or a part 
of a sentence, used as a noun; as, "To steal will render us liable 
to punishment," "Thou shalt not kill, is the sixth command- 
ment." In the former of these examples, "To steal " is the sub- 
ject of the verb, just as "stealing" would be, if the sentence 
were written, " Stealing will render us liable to punishment." 

A noun or a pronoun addressed, and not the subject of any 
verb, is in the Nominative Case Independent; as, "Father, 
forgive them." " Boys,, go home." 

A noun or a pronoun put before a participle as its subject, and 
not being the subject of any verb, is in the Nominative Case 
Absolute ; as, "My father dying, I was left an orphan." 

Models for Parsing. 

"James wrote a letter." "James" is a proper noun, mascu- 
line gender, singular number, third person, nominative case, sub- 
ject of the verb "wrote," according to Rule I., which says, 
" The subject of the verb must be in the nominative case." 

" He will write a letter." " He " is a personal pronoun, masc. g., 

F 



82 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

sing, n., 3d p., nom. case, subject of the verb u will write," ac- 
cording to Rule I. (Quote.) 

Note. — In parsing pronouns, certain other things are to be stated, which 
will be learned under Rule VIII. The parsing in the model is complete, 
so far as it can be given now. 

" To steal will render us liable to punishment." u To steal" 
is a verb in the infinitive mood, used as a noun. It is in the 
neut. gen., sing, n., 3d per., nom. c, and is the subject of the 
verb " will render," according to Note under Rule I. (Quote the 
Note.) 

" Thou shalt not Mil" is a divine command. "Thou shalt not 
kill," is a part of a sentence, used as a noun. It is in the neut. 
gen., sing, n., 3d per., nom. c, and is the subject of the verb "is," 
according to Note under Rule I. (Quote the Note.) 

"Father, forgive them." "Father" is a com. noun, masc. g., 
sing, n., 2d p., and in the nominative case independent, according 
to Note under Rule I. (Quote Note.) 

"The sash falling suddenly, his finger was crushed." "Sash" 
is a com. noun, n. g., sing, n., 3d p., and in the nominative case 
absolute before the participle "falling," according to Note under 
Rule I. (Quote Note.) 

Exercises. 
Parse all the Nominatives in the following sentences : 
Mary wrote a letter. 
The child loves its mother. 
The letter was written by Mary. 
Our neighbors have sold their property. 
The boys are hunting in the woods. 
Perseverance overcomes difficulties. 
Difficulties are overcome by perseverance. 
God loves a cheerful giver. 
Has he not said it, and will he not do it ? 
Christopher Columbus discovered North America. 



SYNTAX. 83 

John Quincy Adams was the sixth President of the United 
States. 
Napoleon, at the head of a large army, crossed the Alps, 
To study seemed his only desire. 
To deceive is always wrong. 
To swear is wrong. 
To play is pleasant. 
To despair is madness. 
Never despair is a good motto. 
Thou shalt not steal, is a divine command. 
Henry, have you studied your lesson? 
Welcome, little stranger. 
Sarah, be quiet. 

Fellow-citizens, listen to my cause. 
Teach me, Lord, to serve thee aright. 
Our Father, who art in heaven. 
Supper being finished, they left the table. 
My father being weary, I relieved him. 
The sun having risen, the clouds disappeared. 

The teacher having been so long ill, his friends feared he would 
not recover. 

The lieutenant led the men, the captain having been disabled. 

Note. — The teacher can add suqh additional exercises as maybe 
deemed necessary. 




84 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 
RULE II. 

A Verb agrees with its Subject in Number and 
Person. 

NOTES. 

When the subject of the verb is an infinitive mood, or a part 
of a sentence, the verb should be singular; as, "To skate is & 
healthful amusement, 1 ' "Thou shalt not kill, is a divine com- 
mand. 1 ' But if there are two or more infinitives, or parts of 
sentences, making distinct subjects, then the verb should be 
plural; as, u To skate and to play cricket are healthful amuse- 
ments, 11 " Thou shalt not kill, and Thou shalt not steal, are divine 
commands. 11 

When the subject of the verb is a collective noun, the verb 
should be singular, if the idea expressed by the noun is singular ; 
as, " The class is large." But if the idea expressed by the noun 
is plural, the verb should be plural; as, u The multitude pursue 
pleasure as their chief good. 11 

Two or more subjects, connected by and, require a verb in the 
plural ; as, " Socrates and Plato were wise. 11 

Two or more subjects, connected by and, if used to express 
only one person or thing, require a verb in the singular; as, 
"That eminent statesman and orator is dead. 11 

Two or more subjects in the singular, connected by or or nor, 
require a verb in the singular; as, " Ignorance or prejudice has 
caused this mistake. 11 

If any one of several subjects connected by or or nor is plural, 
the verb must be plural ; as, "Either he or they were mistaken. 1 ' 

When a verb has subjects of different persons, connected by 
and, the verb agrees with the first person rather than the second, 
and with the second rather than the third; as, "He and I shared 
the peach between us. 11 " Shared, 11 here, should be parsed as in 
the first person. 

When a verb has subjects of different persons, connected by or 
or nor, the verb agrees in person with the subject nearest to it ; 
as, "Either thou or I am mistaken." 



SYNTAX. 85 

Models for Parsing. 

"James wrote a letter. 1 ' "Wrote" is a transitive verb, irreg- 
ular (Pres. write, Past wrote, Past P. written), active voice, in- 
dicative mood, past tense, and is in the singular number, third 
person, to agree with its subject "James, 11 according to Rule II. 
(Quote the Rule.) 

"To steal renders us liable to punishment. 11 "Renders" is a 
trans, verb, reg., act. v., ind. m., pres. t., 3d p., and in the sing, n., 
to agree with its subject "to steal, 11 a verb in the inf. mood 
used as a noun, according to Note under Rule II. (Quote Note.) 

"Thou shalt not steal, is the eighth commandment. 11 "Is 11 is 
an int. v., irr., (Am, was, been,) ind. m., pres. t., 3d p., sing, n., to 
agree with its subject, " Thou shalt not steal, 11 a part of a sentence 
used as a noun, according to Note under Rule II. (Quote Note.) 

" Socrates and Plato tcere wise." " Were " is an intrans. verb, 
irr., (Am, was, been,) ind. m., past, t., 3d p., and in the pi. n. f 
because it has two subjects, "Socrates" and "Plato," connected 
by "and," according to Note under Rule II. (Quote Note.) 

"If that skilful painter and glazier is in town, be sure to em- 
ploy him." "Is 11 is an intrans. verb., irr., (Am, was, been,) ind. 
m., pres. t., 3d p., and in the sing, n., because its two subjects, 
"painter" and "glazier," express only one person, according to 
Note under Rule II. (Quote Note.) 

"Ignorance or prejudice lias caused the mistake." "Has 
caused " is a trans, verb, reg., act. v., ind. m., pres.-p. t., 3d p M 
and in the sing, n., because its two subjects, "ignorance" and 
"prejudice," are in the singular, connected by or, according to 
Note under Rule II. (Quote Note.) 

"He and I shared the peach between us." "Shared" is a 
trans, verb, reg., act. v., ind. m., past, t., in the pi. n., because it 
has two subjects connected by u and," according to Note under 
Rule II. (quote Note), and in the 1st p., according to Note under 
Rule II. (Quote Note.) 

Note.— Verbs in the Infinitive Mood may be parsed, for the present, 
as in the Model on page 65, 
8 



86 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR, 

Exercises. 

Parse the Verbs and Subjects in the following sentences : 

Perseverance overcomes difficulties. 

Difficulties are overcome by perseverance. 

Forgive your enemies. 

The lesson was recited by the class. 

North America was discovered by Columbus. 

Bless them that persecute you. 

To study seemed his only desire. 

To skate is a healthful amusement. 

To contradict persons older and wiser than ourselves, violates 
the rules of politeness. 

To be carnally minded is death. 

A gunner and his dog were seen in the woods. 

The father and daughter were buried in the same grave. 

Famine, pestilence, and death follow in the warrior's path. 

My friend and teacher has gone to England. 

That distinguished poet, orator, and scholar has fallen. 

Neither kindness nor harshness had the desired effect. 

Neither gold nor silver is found in that country. 

Neither time nor tide waits for man. 

Neither the troops, nor their commander, were rewarded. 

Neither John nor his friends were present. 

Either the general or the soldiers are worthy of reward. 

You and he are of the same opinion. 

You and Susan have studied your lessons. 

You and I have forgotten our books. 

Either thou, or the teacher, or I am mistaken. 

Either thou, or I, or the teacher is mistaken. 

Either the teacher, or I, or thou art mistaken. 

The teacher, I, and you are mistaken. 



SYNTAX. 87 

RULE III. 

A Transitive Verb, in the Active Voice, requires 
an Object in the Objective Case. 

Note. — The noun or pronoun in the objective is said to be governed 
by the verb. 

NOTES. 

A participle of a Transitive verb, in the Active voice, requires 
an object in the objective case ; as, " The boy, having eaten un- 
ripe fruit, became sick."" 

The Relative Pronoun, when in the objective case, generally 
precedes the verb by which it is governed; as, u The book which 
you see is mine." Here, u which " is the object of the verb "see," 
and is placed before it. 

The object of the verb is sometimes an infinitive mood, or part 
of a sentence, used as a noun; as, "Boys love to play " God said, 
"Let there be light." 

Models for Parsing. 

" James wrote a letter." "Letter" is a com. noun. n. g., sing, 
n., 3d p., and is in the obj. c, governed by "wrote," a transitive 
verb in the active voice, according to Rule III. (Quote.) 

"The boy, having eaten xmvlpe fruit, became sick." "Fruit" 
is a com. noun, n. g., sing. n„ 3d p., and in the obj. c, governed 
by the participle " having eaten," according to a note under 
Rule III. (Quote Note.) 

"James saw him" "Him" is a pers. pronoun, masc. g., sing. 
n., 3d p., and in the obj. c, governed by "saw," a trans, v. in 
the act. v., according to Rule III. (Quote.) 

Note. — The parsing of the Pronoun here is complete as far as it goes. 
But there are other things to be learned concerning it under Rule VIII., 
before it can be parsed in full. 

Exercises. 

Parse the Objectives which are the objects of Verbs and Participles, 
in the following sentences ; 



88 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

Charles lost his knife. 

Mary found a book. 

William has recited his lesson. 

They may reach the station. 

John caught a bird in the trap. 

If you love God, keep his commandments. 

Temperance promotes health. 

The child, seeing its mother, ran to meet her. 

The boys, having recited their lessons, were dismissed. 

The thief, having stolen the horse, made his escape. 

The dog might have bitten the boy on the hand, if he had not 
been watched by the driver. 

The merchant sold a yard of cloth. 

The family, having read a chapter, closed the Bible, and con- 
tinued their devotions. 

The teacher observed a boy breaking the rules. 

After capturing the fort, the troops entered the city. 

The man whom I saw, informed me that he had a collection 
of wild beasts, which he would exhibit if you would let him. 

Paul said, " Children, obey your parents." 

God said, " Let there be light." 

Boys love to play. 

Charles desires to learn. 

Every child should learn to read. 

Review. 
Parse all the Nominatives and Verbs in the foregoing exercises. 




SYNTAX. 89 

RULE IV. 

A Preposition requires an Object in the Objective 
Case. 

Note. — The noun or pronoun in the objective case after a preposition 
is said to be governed by it. 

NOTES. 

"When a preposition is followed by an adjective without a 
noun, supply the noun, and parse the preposition accordingly; 
as, "Keep to the right (hand)." 

The preposition is frequently omitted, particularly after verbs 
of giving and procuring ; after adjectives of likeness or near- 
ness; and before nouns denoting time, place, price, measure, etc. 
"When it is practicable to supply the ellipsis, the noun or pronoun 
is parsed as in the objective, governed by the preposition thus 
supplied. But when no such word can be supplied, we say the 
noun is in the objective, expressing time, place, price, measure, 
etc., without any governing word. Examples: Give (to) me a 
book. Get (for) me an apple. Like (to) bis father. Near (to) 
his home. They travelled (through) sixty miles (in) a day. A 
wall six feet high. Subjects worthy (of) fame. Books worth 
(worthy of?) a dollar. 

Sometimes one preposition immediately precedes another; as, 
"From- before the altar." The two prepositions in such cases 
should be considered as one, just as in the case of the compound 
prepositions upon, tcithin, etc. 

Sometimes a preposition precedes an adverb; as, at once, for 
ever, etc. The two words should be taken together, as in the 
preceding case, and called an adverb. 

Models for Parsing. 

"James wrote a letter to his father." "Father" is a com, 
noun, masc. g., sing, n., 3d. p., and in the obj. c, governed by the 
preposition " to," according to Rule IV. (Quote.) 

"To" is a preposition, showing the relation between "wrote" 
8* 



90 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR, 

and "father," and governs "father" in the obj. c., according to 
Rule IV. (Quote.) 

" God seeth in secret." " In " is a preposition, showing the 
relation between "seeth" and "places," or some such noun 
understood. The meaning is, " God seeth in secret places." 

" Give your brother the book." " Brother " is a common 
noun, masc. g., sing, n., 3d. p., and in the obj. c, governed by 
the preposition " to," understood, according to note under Rule 
IV. (Quote.) 

Exercises. 

Parse the Prepositions, and the Nouns or Pronouns governed by them, 
in the following sentences : 

When the widow stood beside the grave of her husband, she 
thought over his many acts of kindness towards her. Now he 
was to rest beneath the clods of the valley, and she was to be 
left without a partner. The good minister told her to look for 
comfort in her affliction unto her heavenly Father, and to think 
of that blissful abode above the weary world, and of that better 
life beyond the grave. 

Turn to the left. 

He selected an apple from the best in his orchard. 

Mary looks like her mother. 

Charles, give me that book. 

His ability won him much renown. 

The clouds seemed like piles of snow. 

A bird can fly twenty miles an hour. 

Children near the sea gather shells. 

The merchant sold mother, for fifty cents, a yard of silk worth 
one dollar, and promised to get her some better silk at a less 
price the next week. 






Review. 

Parse all the Subjects, Verbs, and Objects of Verbs in the 
foregoing sentences. 



SYNTAX. 91 

RULE V. 

A Noun or a Pronoun in the Possessive Case is 
dependent upon the Noun signifying the thing 
possessed. 

Note. — The noun or pronoun in the possessive case is said to be gov- 
erned by the noun signifying the thing possessed. 

NOTES. 

The noun governing the possessive case is often omitted ; as, 
" I bought this slate at the bookseller's [shop]. ,, In such cases, 
supply the omission, and parse according to the general rule. 

In complex names and in complex titles, the sign of the pos- 
sessive is put only at the end, and the whole complex name, or 
title, is parsed as one word. Thus, "George Washington's fare- 
well address," not "George's Washington's," etc. 

A complex title sometimes consists of several words, some of 
which may be different parts of speech, and may have an inde- 
pendent construction of their own ; thus, " The captain of the 
guard's horse was slain." In parsing such a sentence, u of the 
guard " should be parsed first, each word separately, " guard " 
being in the objective. Then, "captain of the guard's" should 
be parsed as one complex title, in the possessive case, governed 
by "horse." The 's belongs not to "guard," but to the whole 
expression. 

The possessive is sometimes governed by a participle used as a 
noun; as, "The cause of John's forgetting the lesson was his 
anxiety about the excursion." Here, "John's" is in the pos- 
sessive case, governed by "forgetting" used as a noun. It would 
not be correct to put " John " in the objective case governed by 
"of." "Of," here, governs "forgetting," not "John." "The 
cause of John forgetting the lesson," should be, "The cause of 
John's forgetting the lesson." 

Models for Parsing. 

"James wrote a letter by his father's permission." "Fath- 
er's " is a com. noun, masc. g., sing, n., 3d p., and in the poss. c, 
governed by " permission," according to Rule V. (Quote.) 



92 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

Parse his in the foregoing sentence. 

" His 11 is a pers. pronoun, masc. g., sing, n., 3d p., and in the 
poss. c., governed by "father's," according to Rule V. (Quote.) 

Note. — The parsing of the Pronoun here is complete as far as it goes. 
But there are other things to be learned concerning it under Rule VIII. 
before it can be parsed in full. 

"George Washington's Farewell Address has just been read." 
" George Washington's," a complex name, is a prop, noun, masc. 
g., sing, n., 3d p., poss. c, governed by u Address," according to 
RuleV. (Quote.) 

The Commander-in-chiefs horse was stolen. "Commander- 
in-chief's," a complex title, is a com. noun, masc. g., sing, n., 
3d p., poss. c, governed by " horse," according to Rule V. 
(Quote.) 

Exercises. 

Parse all the Nouns and Pronouns in the possessive case, in the fol- 
lowing sentences : 

Cruel boys rob birds' nests. 

The widow's friend will not defraud her children. 

The boy's politeness caused his friends to respect him. 

Mary's friend arrived home safely. 

The girl, who lost her book, has found it. 

He preferred a shepherd's life to a monarch's throne. 

Benjamin Franklin's grave is in Philadelphia. 

My father-in-law's house was destroyed by fire. 

My brother's behavior is better than my sister's. 

She went to the baker's and bought bread for her children. 

He spends his spare time at the lawyer's. 

They stopped at the bookseller's and made their purchases. 

Review. 

In the foregoing sentences, parse all the Subjects, Verbs, Ob- 
jects, and Prepositions. 



SYNTAX. 93 

RULE VI. 

A Noun or a Pronoun, put in Apposition with 
another, agrees ivith it in Case. 

Note. — A word is said to be in apposition with another when it is 
used to explain or identify the other; as, "Smith, the bookseller, died 
yesterday/' or when it is repeated for the sake of emphasis ; as, " Cis- 
terns, broken cisterns, that can hold no water." 

NOTES. 

The words in apposition may be in any case, nominative, pos- 
sessive, or objective. 

A noun may be put in apposition with a whole sentence ; as, 
"He promptly acceded to my request, an act which redounds 
greatly to his honor." "Act " is here nominative, in apposition 
with the whole of the preceding sentence. 

One of the most frequent instances of apposition is where the 
proper noun of an object is appended to its common name; as, 
"The river Delaware." 

The phrases "They love one another," "They love each other," 
etc., afford instances of apposition that very frequently occur. 
In the first of these examples, "one " is in the nominative, and 
is in apposition with "they; " and "another" is in the objective, 
governed by "love." The meaning is, "One loves another." 

Model for Parsing. 

"James wrote a letter to his brother Jolm." "John" is a 
prop, noun, masc. g., sing, n., 3d p., obj. c, in apposition with 
the noun " brother," according to Rule VI. (Quote.) 

Exercises. 

Parse the Nouns and Pronouns in apposition in the following sen- 
tences, correcting where necessary : 

Alexander, the coppersmith, did me great harm. 

My brother, James, has gone home. 

Washington, the first President, was buried at Mount Vernon. 



94 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

My cousin, Mary, has written me a letter. 

Kidd, the notorious pirate, suffered the felon's reward, death 
upon the gallows. 

William "bought a book for his sister Mary. 

Mr. Embury crossed the river Delaware in the ferry-boat 
Eagle. 

The steamer Pennsylvania will sail on Monday. 

We should make our business our pleasure. 

Why do you assail me, your only brother ? 

Harrisburg, the capital of Pennsylvania, lies on the east bank 
of the river Susquehanna. 

Preserve your health, the poor man's wealth, the rich man's 
bliss. 

Review. 

Parse, in the foregoing exercises, all the Subjects, Objects, 
Possessives, Prepositions, and Verbs. 




SYNTAX. 95 

RULE VII. 

The Verb To Be has the same Case after it as 
before it. 

Note. — In such instances, the noun or pronoun after the verb is not 
in apposition with the noun or pronoun before it, but is a part of the 
predicate of the verb. Thus : " James is commander of the troops." 
Here, " Commander " should be parsed as nominative after the verb is. 
The same meaning would be conveyed by the expression " James com- 
mands the troops," so that the word commander is really a part of the 
predicate. 

NOTES. 

This rule applies to all the variations of the verb "to be," 
such as, am, art, is, was, were, etc. It applies also to the verb 
become and to several other intransitive verbs, and also to the 
passive voice of some transitive verbs, such as to be named, to be 
called, etc. 

The verb to be in the infinitive mood used as a noun may have 
a noun or a pronoun after it without any other noun before it ; as, 
" To be a good man, is not so easy a thing as many people imagine." 
Here " man " should be parsed as used indefinitely after the verb 
to be, without saying what its case is. The infinitive mood of 
many other intransitive verbs, and likewise the infinitive passive 
of some transitive verbs, may also have a noun or a pronoun after 
them used indefinitely; as, "To live a consistent Christian is not 
easy," "To be called a Roman was counted a great honor." 

Model for Parsing. 

"James is commander of the troops." "Commander" is a 
com. noun, masc. g., sing, n., 3d p., nom. c. after the verb "is," 
according to Rule VII. (Quote.) 

"To be a good man is not an easy thing." "Man" is a com. 
noun, masc. g., sing, n., 3d p., used indefinitely after the verb " to 
be," according to Note under Eule VII. (Quote.) 

Exercises. 

Parse the Nouns and Pronouns after the verb in the same case with 
the noun or pronoun before it, in the following sentences : 



96 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

Ellen is the best scholar in the class. 

Arnold was a traitor to his country. 

I am the owner of this property. 

Nathan said unto David, " Thou art the man." 

Godliness, with contentment, is great gain. 

It was he that did it. 

It was she that told us the story. 

It was Charles that we saw on the boat. 

Washington was the first President. 

I am sure it was John who passed. 

Thomson, the author of "The Seasons," is a delightful poet. 

Intemperance has been the ruin of many. 

He was considered to be a suitable person. 

To be called a coward does not make one so. 

To be a good citizen should be every man's desire. 

The Senate caused Scylla to be proclaimed dictator. 

To die a hero is better than to live a coward. 

Review. 

Parse, in the foregoing exercises, all the Subjects, Possessives, 
Objects, Prepositions, and Verbs. 







SYNTAX. 97 

RULE VIII. 

A Pronoun agrees ivith the Noun or the Pronoun 
for which it stands, in Gender, Number, and Per- 
son. 

notes. 

When a pronoun stands for a Collective noun, the pronoun 
should be singular, if the idea expressed by the noun is singular ; 
as, u The class is too large; it must be divided into sections." 
But if the idea expressed by the noun is plural, the pronoun 
should be plural, and should be in the neuter gender. u Send 
the multitude away that they may buy themselves bread. 1 ' 

When a pronoun stands for two or more words, connected by 
and, the pronoun should be plural. Thus, " William and Mary 
were both there ; I saw them.''' " He and Mary were both there ; 
I saw them." " He and she were both there; I saw them." 
"Them" in the first example stands for two nouns, in the sec- 
ond example for a noun and a pronoun, and in the third for two 
pronouns. 

When a pronoun stands for two or more words, connected by 
and, but used to express only one subject, the pronoun should be 
singular. Thus, u He knew his Lord and Saviour, and loved him." 

When a pronoun stands for two or more words, in the singular, 
connected by or or nor, the pronoun should be singular. Thus, 
'•Either play or work is injurious, if it is carried to excess. 1 ' If 
one of the words connected by or or nor is plural, the pronoun 
representing them should be plural; as, "Neither the captain nor 
the crew knew their danger." 

When a pronoun stands for two or more words, connected by 
and, but of different persons, the pronoun agrees with the first 
person rather than the second, and with the second rather than 
the third. Thus, " William and I had our skates with us." 
"Our" and "us" are plural, because they stand for two sub- 
jects, "William " and "I." But one of these subjects, "William," 
being in the third person, and the other, "I," being in the first 
person, the pronoun which stands for both must be in the first 
9 G 



98 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

person. We would not express the meaning, if we were to say, 
" William and I had their skates with them" 

A pronoun may stand for an infinitive mood; as, "To contra- 
dict may be rude, but it is not criminal." A pronoun may stand 
also for a part of a sentence; as, " He is very witty, but unfortu- 
nately he is aware of it." The pronoun in such cases should be 
in the neuter gender, singular number, and third person. But if 
there are two or more infinitives, or parts of sentences, making 
distinct subjects, then the pronoun should be plural ; as, u To be 
temperate, and to use exercise in the open air, are good preserva- 
tives of health, but they are not infallible." 

The pronoun it is sometimes used indefinitely, that is, without 
standing for any particular noun. When so used, it is in the 
neuter gender, singular number, and third person. Thus, " Come 
and trip it as you go," "drains," " See how it snows," "72 is he." 

Who is used in referring to persons ; Which is used in referring 
to inferior animals, to things without life, to infants, to collective 
nouns expressing a singular idea, and to persons in asking ques- 
tions where the particular individual was inquired for. " Which" 
was formerly applied to persons as well as things; as, " Our Father, 
which art in heaven." 

That is used instead of Who or Which in the following cases : 

1. After two antecedents, one requiring who, and the other 
requiring which ; as, "The man and the house that we saw 
yesterday." 

2. After the Superlative ; as, "It is the best book that can be 
got." 

3. After Same ; as, " He is the same kind-hearted man that he 
used to be." 

4. After All, or any similar antecedent expressing a general 
meaning, limited by the following verb ; as, " All that heard me 
can testify." 

5. After Who, used interrogatively; as, "Who, that has seen 
anything of human nature, can believe it? " 

6. After It, used indefinitely; as, "It was he that did it." 



SYNTAX. 99 

The relative is sometimes omitted ; as, " The letter [which] you 
wrote me on Saturday, came duly to hand." 

The antecedent is sometimes omitted; as, "Who lives to na- 
ture, rarely can he poor," meaning, The person who lives, etc. 

Models for Parsing. 

"Mary lost her hook." "Her" is a pers. pron., fem. gen., 
sing, numb., 3d per., to agree with "Mary," according to Eule 
VIII. (quote), and is in the possessive case, governed by "book," 
according to Rule Y. (Quote.) 

"John, who was at school, wrote a letter to his father." 
"Who" is a rel. pron., relating to "John" for its antecedent; 
it is in the masc. g., sing, n., 3d p., to agree with "John," accord- 
ing to Rule VIII. (quote), and is in the nom, c, subject of the 
verb "was," according to Rule I. (Quote.) 

"The class is too large; it must be divided." "It" is a pers. 
pron., neut. g., sing, n., 3d p., to agree with "class," a collective 
noun expressing a singular idea, according to a Note under Rule 
VIII. (quote Note), and is in the nom. c, subject of the verb 
"must be divided," according to Rule I. (Quote.) 

" Charles and Henry were both there ; I saw them." " Them " 
is a pers. pron., masc. g., plur. n., 3d p., to agree with "Charles" 
and "Henry," two words connected by "and," according to a 
Note under Rule VIII. (quote Note), and is in the obj. c, object 
of the verb "saw," according to Rule III. (Quote.) 

"William and I had our skates with us" "Us" is a pers. 
pron., standing for "William" and "I," two words of different 
persons; it is therefore in the 1st p., according to a Note under 
Rule VIII. (quote Note), plur. n., according to a Note under 
Rule VIII. (quote Note), and is in the obj. c, governed by the 
preposition "with," according to Rule IV. (Quote.) 

" To contradict may be rude, but it is not criminal. " It " is a 
pers. pron., standing for " To contradict ; " a verb in the infinitive 
mood used as a noun, it is therefore in the neut. g., sing, n., 3d p., 
according to a Note under Rule VIII. (quote Note), and is in the 
nom. c, subject of the verb "is," according to Rule I. (Quote.) 



100 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

"It rained all night. 1 ' " It" is a pers. pron., used indefinitely; 
it is in the neut. g., sing, n., 3d p., according to a Note under Rule 
VIII. (quote Note), and is in the nom. c, subject of the verb 
"rained," according to Rule I. (Quote.) 

"The man and the house that we saw yesterday." "That" is 
a rel. pron., relating to two antecedents, "man" and u house," 
and used instead of " who " or " which," according to a Note 
under Rule VIII. (quote Note), plur. n., according to a Note under 
Eule VIII. (quote Note), 3d p., and is in the obj. c, governed by 
the verb "saw," according to Rule III. (Quote.) 

" Give me what I want." "What " is a rel. pron., and relates 
to the object of "give," understood, for its antecedent; it is in 
the neut. g., sing, n., 3d p., to agree with the omitted antecedent, 
according to Rule VIII. (quote), and is in the obj. c, object of 
the verb "want," according to Rule III. (Quote.) 

"Whoever hopes to win the prize, must labor hard." "Who- 
ever" is a compound rel. pron., composed of who and ever, re- 
lating to "person," or some other like word omitted, for its ante- 
cedent; in the com. g., sing, n., 3d p., to agree with the omitted 
antecedent, according to Rule VIII. (quote), and is in the nom. c, 
subject of the verb "hopes," according to Rule I. (Quote.) 

" Who wrote the letter ? John." " Who " is an interrogative 
pronoun, [seepage 34,] relating to the subsequent word "John;" 
it is in the masculine gender, singular number, and third person, 
to agree with "John," according to Rule VIII. (quote), and is 
in the nominative case, subject of the verb "wrote," according 
to Rule I. (Quote.) 

"Who wrote the letter?" "Who" is an interrogative pro- 
noun, relating to some noun contained in the answer, and not 
yet given; its gender, number, and person, therefore, cannot be 
determined; it is in the nominative case, subject of the verb 
"wrote," according to Rule I. (Quote.) 

" I do not know who wrote it." " Who " is a responsive pro- 
noun, not relating to any word, either antecedent or subsequent ; 
its gender, number, and person, cannot be determined; it is in 
the nom. c, subject of the verb "wrote," according to Eule I. 



SYNTAX. 101 

Exercises. 
Parse all the Pronouns in the following sentences : 

John sold his colt to his brother. 

Lucy gave her book to her cousin. 

"While Charles was at school he wrote a letter to his brother. 

The boy was arrested by the officer who detected him in the 
act. 

I lost my knife in the woods. 

The general, who knew the treachery of the enemy, cautioned 
his troops of their danger. 

The boy who studies will improve. 

George received the letter which Charles wrote to him. 

Trust not him whose friendship is bought. 

14 We come to you to complain of your soldiers ; they have de- 
stroyed our playground. We requested them not to disturb it, 
but they called us rebels, and told us to help ourselves if we 
could." 

The regiment is now in winter quarters, but it will soon be or- 
dered to the front. 

The captain reproved the company because they came without 
their muskets. 

Mary wrote to Charles and John, and advised them to return 
to their homes. 

He and Lucy are in the city, for I saw them. 

The captain and the crew were nearly exhausted when they 
were discovered. 

He remembered his benefactor and friend, and loved him for 
his kindness. 

The tyrant and coward is despised by all that know him. 

Charles wrote to his friend and playmate, and promised to 
visit him. 

Neither Mary nor Lucy studied her lesson. 
Either the officer or the men have failed to perform their duty. 
9* 



102 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

Henry and I took our books to school with us. 

Mother and I took our friends with us to see the painting. 

You and Henry must study your lessons. 

To swear is as impolite as it is wicked. 

It is snowing very fast. 

It is useless to search further. 

Who broke the slate ? John. 

Who won the prize ? Mary. 

Who recited the lesson? 

Whose book was lost? 

I do not know who recited the lesson. 

I cannot tell whose book was lost. 

You may do what you please, say whatever you will, and take 
whatsoever you like, but what you do, or whatever you say, and 
whatsoever you take, you must account for. 

Review. 

Parse, in the foregoing exercises, all the Nouns, Prepositions, 
and Verbs. 




SYNTAX. 103 

RULE IX. 

An Article belongs to the Noun which it qualifies 
or points out* 

NOTES. 

The noun to which the article belongs is sometimes omitted. In 
that case, supply the noun, and parse the article according to the 
Kule, as belonging to the noun thus supplied. Thus, " Turn neither 
to the right [hand], nor to the left [hand]." " Henry the Eighth 
[king of that name] was then reigning." 

A is often an abbreviation for some other short word, at, in, 
on, etc. ; as, "His greatness is a ripening." In such cases it is not 
an article, but a preposition, and is to be parsed accordingly. 

Model for Parsing. 

"James wrote a letter." " A " is the ind. art., and belongs to 
the noun "letter," according to Rule IX. (Quote.) 

Exercises. 
£arse the Articles in the following sentences : 

A book. A good man. The new coat. The fast horse. 

In crossing a bridge, you must always keep to the right. 

James the Second was banished from the kingdom. 

Give glory to God in the highest. 

The poor have claims on the rich. 

The less you spend the more you will have. 

Review. 

Parse, in the foregoing exercises, all the Nouns, Pronouns, 
Prepositions, and Verbs. 

* Note.— It might perhaps be more scientific to say, " The Article is con- 
nected syntactically with the Noun which it qualifies or points out." But 
the rule as given is easier for the memory, and gives substantially the same 
idea to the young learner, the only object in either case being to accustom 
him to the necessity of pointing out the noun to which the Article is thus 
related. 



104 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

RULE X. 

An Adjective belongs to the Noun or the Pronoun 
which it qualifies* 

NOTES. 

The noun to which the adjective belongs is sometimes omitted; 
as, u Of two evils, choose the least . . . ." In such cases, supply 
the omission, and parse the adjective according to the Rule, as 
belonging to the noun thus supplied. 

An adjective sometimes qualifies an infinitive mood, or a part 
of a sentence, used as a noun; as, "To play is pleasant." "To 
use profane language is both foolish and wicked.'" In such cases 
the adjective should be parsed as belonging to the infinitive 
mood, or the part of a sentence. 

Model for Parsing. 

"James writes a long letter. "Long" is an adj., in the pos. 
deg., compared long, longer, longest, and belongs to "letter," 
which it qualifies or describes, according to Rule X. (Quote.) 

"Of two evils, choose the least." "Least" is an adj., in the 
superlative deg., (little, less, least,) and belongs to "evil" under- 
stood, which it qualifies or describes, according to Rule X. 
(Quote.) 

"To play is pleasant." "Pleasant" is an adj., pos. deg., 
(pleasant, more pleasant, most pleasant,) and belongs to "To 
play," a verb in the infin. m., used as a noun, which it qualifies 
or describes, according to Note under Rule X. (Quote the Note'. ) 

Exercises. 
Parse the Adjectives in the following sentences : 

A large reward was offered. 

John is a rapid writer. 

She is a good girl. 

John is a better writer than Charles. 

* See Note on page 103. 



SYNTAX. 105 

The darkest night will pass away. 
The example is not difficult. 
The train went to Xew York at a rapid rate. 
His new slate was broken into many small pieces. 
A merry heart maketh a glad countenance. 
Charles is the most industrious boy in his class. 
Mary is a better writer than Charles. 
The poor have claims upon the rich. 
In crossing a bridge keep to the right. 
.Henry the Eighth was then on the throne. 
James the Second was banished from the kingdom. 
The less you spend, the more you will have. 
To steal is wicked. 
To eat unripe fruit is injurious. 

The window is so located that you can see the beautiful new 
houses on the opposite side of the river. 

Review. 

In the foregoing exercises, parse all the Xouns, Pronouns, 
Prepositions, Articles, and Verbs. 




106 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 
RULE XI. 

An Adjective Pronoun belongs to the Noun or the 
Pronoun which it qualifies or points out* 

NOTES. 

The Distributives and Demonstratives agree in number with 
the nouns to which they belong; as, "This sort of persons," not 
" These sort." The distributives, each, every, either, neither, are 
all singular. Of the demonstratives, this and that are singular, 
these and those plural. 

The noun is often understood after adjective pronouns. In 
such cases, supply the noun, and parse as usual; as, "Let each 
.... do his duty." 

Model for Parsing. 

"James wrote this letter." "This" is a dem. adj. pron., be- 
longing to " letter," according to Rule XL (quote), and is in the 
singular number, to agree with "letter," according to Note under 
Rule XL (Quote.) 

Exercises. 

Parse the Adjective Pronouns in the following sentences: 

Those men only are great who are good. 

This house belongs to my father. 

That style of dress is admired. 

Those books are not in their places. 

Such boys are worthy of respect. 

Some rivers are shallow. 

Give me the other hat. 

Every station in life has its cares. 

All men must die. 

Each boy took his book and went home. 

Neither of the boys have arrived. 

That horse which you see is mine. 

* See Note on page 103. 



SYNTAX. 107 

That statement is not correct. 

John, you can take one book, and Mary can take the other. 

Such conduct deserves reproof. 

Both boys have arrived in time. 

This knife was given to me by my brother. 

These books were purchased for our library. 

Some live in poverty, some in wealth. 

Review. 

Parse, in the foregoing exercises, all the Nouns, Pronouns, 
Prepositions, Articles, Adjectives, and Verbs. 




108 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 
RULE XII. 

A Participle belongs to the Noun or the Pronoun 
which it qualifies* 

NOTES. 

1. The participle is often used as a noun, either in the nomina- 
tive case or in the objective; as, u Writing letters is easier than 
writing compositions " (nom.); u In writing letters he soon be- 
came expert " (obj.). In these instances, the participle, as a part 
of the verb, retains its government of the objective. 

2. The participle used as a noun, is frequently found govern- 
ing another noun in the possessive case; as, "Much depends on 
John's writing his letters rapidly." 

3. The participle is sometimes used simply as a noun; as, 
"Avoid foolish talking and jesting." "When so used, parse the 
word as a participial noun. 

4. The participle is sometimes used simply as an adjective; as, 
u Singing birds abound in summer," "He is a learned man." 
When a participle is so used, call it a participial adjective, and 
parse it as any other adjective. 

5. A participle of the verb to oe may have a noun or a pro- 
noun after it in apposition with the one before it : as, " Thomas, 
being an apt scholar, won the favor of his teacher." This rule 
applies also to the participles of many other intransitive verbs, 
and likewise to the participles of the passive voice of some tran- 
sitive verbs; as, "Solomon, while reigning Icing, built the tem- 
ple," "Washington, being appointed commander-in-chief, pro- 
ceeded at once to Cambridge." 

Model for Parsing. 

" The child, seeing its mother, ran to meet her." "Seeing" is 
the present participle, active, of the irregular transitive verb "to 
see," (see, saw, seen,) and belongs to "child," according to Rule 
XII. (Quote.) 

* See Note on page 103. 



SYNTAX. 109 

"Writing letters is easier than writing compositions." "Writ- 
ing "'is the pres. part., active, of the irreg. trans, verb "to write," 
(write, wrote, written.) It is here used as a noun, according 
to a note under Kule XII. (Quote the Note.) It is in the nom. 
case, subject of the verb "is," according to Rule I. (Quote.) 

"Avoid foolish talking and jesting." " Talking" is a parti- 
cipial noun, in the neut. gen., sing, numb., 3d per., obj. c, object 
of the verb "avoid," according to Rule III. (Quote.) 

"Singing birds abound in summer." " Singing" is a participial 
adj., not . compared, and belongs to "birds," which it qualifies 
or describes, according to Rule X. 

"James, having toritten a letter, sent it to the post-office." 
" Having written " is the comp. perf. part., active, of the irr. 
trans, verb u to write" (write, wrote, written), and belongs to 
"James," according to Rule XII. (Quote.) 

Exercises. 

Parse all the Participles in the following sentences : 

The snow, falling rapidly, soon covered the ground. 
A man deserving blame should be censured. 
The laborer, fatigued with the toil of the day, slept soundly. 
The exercise written by Charles was admired by all. 
The boys, having recited their lessons, were dismissed. 
. John, having written his composition, gave it to the teacher. 
The day being far spent, we returned to our homes. 
The lesson having been recited, the class was dismissed. 
The fire having been extinguished, the crowd dispersed. 
Honor defined by Cicero is the approbation of good men. 
William, being successful in his examination, expects promo- 
tion. 

William, having been successful in his examination, was pro- 
moted. 

10 



110 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

William, having succeeded in his examination, expects to. be 
promoted. 

Reading good books promotes knowledge. 

In catching fish he soon became expert. 

Charles takes pleasure in studying his lessons. 

Much depends on Mary's reaching the city promptly. 

John's writing is worthy of commendation. 

The astronomer spent the night in studying the heavens. 

Loud talking and laughing are rude. 

Bryant is a distinguished poet. 

The roaring lion is an object of fear. 

Charles being the first boy to arrive, was rewarded. 

Mary being an industrious girl was commended by her teacher. 

He being an old offender, was sentenced to imprisonment. 

The fire breaking out in the night, and the night being dark, 
the house was destroyed, the frightened inmates barely escaping 
with their lives, with their clothing scorched, and with limbs 
broken or bodies mutilated. 

Review. 

Parse, in the foregoing exercises, all the Nouns, Pronouns, 
Prepositions, Articles, Adjectives, and Verbs. 




SYNTAX. Ill 

RULE XIII. 

An Adverb belongs to the Verb, Adjective, or 
other Adverb which it qualifies* 

NOTES. 

There is often used as a mere expletive, its only force being to 
introduce the verb before its nominative; as, "There is truth in 
the old proverb." In such sentences, there does not mean in 
that place. 

Nay, no, yea, yes, expressing simply negation or affirmation, 
contain in themselves a complete sense, and do not belong to any 
verb. The same is true of Amen. In parsing each word state 
merely that they are adverbs. 

Adverbs should not be used where adjectives are required, 
that is, to qualify nouns or pronouns. Thus, " The dress looked 
pretty," not "prettily" "Pretty," here, is an adjective describ- 
ing "dress," and does not qualify the verb "looked." It does 
not express the manner of looking. 

Sometimes an adverb is preceded by a preposition, as, at once, 
for ever, etc. In such cases the two words should be taken 
together and called an adverb. 

Model for Parsing. 

"James wrote a letter hastily." "Hastily" is an adv. in the 
pos. deg. (hastily, more hastily, most hastily), and belongs to the 
verb "wrote," according to Rule XII. (Quote.) 

"A thoroughly bad man." " Thoroughly " is an adv. in the 
pos. deg. (thoroughly, more thoroughly, most thoroughly), and 
belongs to the adj. "bad," according to Rule XII. (Quote.) 

Exercises. 
Parse all the Adverbs in the following sentences : 
Live temperately. 
She is particularly careful. 

* See Note, page 103. 



112 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

This horse runs very rapidly. 
The most cautious are often deceived. 
Thus the farmer sows his seed. 
Great men are greatly admired. 
How can you behave so badly ? 
Why do you neglect your duty? 

A smart child may learn more rapidly than is desirable. 
Remember now thy Creator in the days of thy youth. 
You must try to write more carefully; you are the least careful 
writer in the class. 

Cherish me kindly, cheer my young heart, 
I will follow thee ever, and never depart. 

There was a man sent from God whose name was John, 
There is truth in the old proverb. 
There is nothing to be seen. 
Did you recite the lesson? Yes. 
Has Charles returned from school? No. 
The boys have arrived at last. 
They returned at once to their homes. 
A good name endureth for ever. 

It is exceedingly cold, the north wind blows keenly ! I have 
seldom experienced so severe a winter. 

Review. 

In the preceding exercises, parse all the Nouns, Pronouns, 
Prepositions, Articles, Adjectives, and Verbs. 




SYNTAX. 113 

RULE XIV. 

The Infinitive Mood depends upon some Verb, 
Adjective, or Noun. 

Explanation. — " He delights to tease his companions." Here, " to 
tease " depends on the verb " delights." That is the word with which 
it must be connected in order to make sense. 

" His time to die had not yet come." In this example, " to die " de- 
pends on the noun " time." 

"He was too stupid to learn." Here, "to learn" depends on the 
adjective "stupid." 

NOTES. 

1. The preposition to, which is used in making the form called 
the infinitive mood, and which is generally called the sign of the 
infinitive mood, is not to be parsed by itself, but with the verb. 

2. To, the sign of the infinitive, is generally omitted after the 
active voice of the verbs lid, dare (to venture), need, make, see, 
hear, feel, let, and some others; as, "I saw him (to) do it." In 
the passive voice of these verbs, however, the "to " is generally 
expressed; as, "He was seen to do it." 

3. The infinitive mood is frequently used as a noun, and at the 
same time retains its government of the objective case. Thus, 
"To write letters is easy." Here, "to write," as a noun, is 
nominative to "is," and at the same time, as a verb, governs 
" letters." 

Model for Parsing. 

" Charles expects to win the prize." " To win" is a trans, verb, 
irr. (win, won, won), act. v., inf. m., pres. t., and depends upon 
the verb "expects," according to Kule XIV. (Quote.) 

Exercises. 
Parse all the Infinitives in the following sentences : 

Charles expects to return to school. 

Mary tried to catch the train. 

Henry wanted to borrow my knife. 
10* H 



114 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

The sinner was not prepared to die. 
He was too scurrilous to be tolerated in decent society. 
The President was to have been inaugurated last Friday. 
She seemed to love her child, and yet she was seen to treat it 
badly. 

It was too late to travel any farther. 

It is too early to visit her. 

It was too wet to go out. 

I saw him take the book. 

I heard him recite the lesson. 

They need not call her. 

I bade him go home. 

Employ your time judiciously, and you will not find it pass so 
slowly. 

To write letters is easy. 
To write a good composition requires care. 
To love our friends is natural. 

The difference in their conduct makes us approve the one and 
condemn the other. 

Review. 

Parse all the other words in the foregoing exercises, except the 
Conjunctions. 




SYNTAX. 115 

RULE XV. 

A Conjunction connects the Words, Sentences, or 
Parts of Sentences, between which it stands. 

NOTES. 

The words connected by conjunctions must be of the same 
class. Nouns are connected with nouns, adjectives with adjec- 
tives, verbs with verbs, adverbs with adverbs, etc. Nouns and 
pronouns are here counted as belonging to one class. 

Words and clauses are often connected, not by a single con- 
junction, but by two conjunctions, or by a conjunction and an 
adverb, corresponding to each other; as, "Give me neither' 
poverty nor riches." 

Model for Parsing. 

"James and John are brothers." "And" is a conjunction, 
connecting "James" and "John," according to Rule XV. 
(Quote.) 

"It is neither cold nor hot." "Neither" and "nor" are cor- 
responding conjunctions, connecting "cold" and "hot," accord- 
ing to a note under Eule XV. (Quote.) 

Exercises. 
Parse all the Conjunctions in the following sentences : 

John and James have gone to school. 

The farmer sold his wheat and corn to the miller. 

Forget the faults of others, and remember your own. 

You shall never fail, if you do these things. 

Though he slay me, yet will I trust in him. 

He is a friend to-day, but may be an enemy to-morrow. 

As he treats others, so will he be treated by them. 

Washington was a better man than Napoleon. 

Unless it blossom in the spring, the tree will not bear fruit. 

The hour has arrived, therefore we must depart. 

Review. 

Parse all the other words in the foregoing sentences. 



116 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

RULE XVI. — INTERJECTIONS. 

An Interjection has no dependence upon other 
words. 

NOTES. 

In parsing an interjection, all that is necessary is to tell what 
part of speech it is. 

Sometimes interjections have the appearance of governing the 
objective case; as, "Ah, me!" But such sentences are always 
elliptical, some verb or preposition being understood ; as, "Ah! 
(pity) me." 




REVIEW EXERCISES. 



1. Write three sentences, each containing a noun used as the 
subject of a verb. 

2. Write three sentences, each containing a pronoun used as 
the subject of a verb. 

3. Write three sentences, each containing a complex name 
used as the subject of a verb. 

4. Write three sentences, each containing a verb in the infini- 
tive mood used as a noun, subject of a verb. 

5. Write three sentences, each containing a noun in the nom- 
inative case independent. 

6. Write three sentences, each containing a noun in the nom- 
inative case absolute. 

7. Write three sentences, each containing a verb in the plural 
number, having two or more subjects connected by " and." 

8. Write three sentences, each containing a verb in the singular 
number, having two or more subjects connected by "and." 

9. Write three sentences, each containing a verb in the singular 
number, having two or more subjects connected by "or" or 
" nor." 

10. Write three sentences, each containing a verb in the plural 
number, having two or more subjects connected by "or" or 
"nor" 

11. Write three sentences, each containing a verb in the infin- 
itive mood used as a noun in the objective case. 

117 



118 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

12. Write three sentences, each containing a part of a sen- 
tence used as a noun in the objective case. 

13. Write three sentences, each containing a preposition fol- 
lowed by an adjective without any noun expressed. 

14. Write three sentences, each containing a noun in the 
objective case, object of some omitted preposition. 

15. Write three sentences, each containing a noun in the pos- 
sessive case with the governing noun omitted. 

16. Write three sentences, each containing a complex name in 
the possessive case. 

17. Write three sentences, each containing a complex title in 
the possessive case. 

18. Write three sentences, each containing a noun in the pos- 
sessive case governed by a participle. 

19. Write three sentences, each containing a noun in apposi- 
tion with another noun in the nominative case. 

20. Write three sentences, each containing a noun in apposi- 
tion with another noun in the objective case. 

21. Write three sentences, each containing the verb "to be" 
used as a noun, and having a noun or pronoun after it used 
indefinitely. 

22. Write three sentences, each containing a pronoun standing 
for a collective noun. 

23. Write three sentences, each containing a pronoun in the 
plural number standing for two or more words connected by 
"and." 

24. Write three sentences, each containing a pronoun in the 
singular number standing for two or more words connected by 
"and." 

25. Write three sentences, each containing a pronoun in the 
singular number standing for two or more words connected by 
"or" or "nor" 

26. Write three sentences, each containing a pronoun in the 
plural number standing for two or more words connected by 
"or" or "nor" 



SYNTAX. 119 

27. Write three sentences, each containing a pronoun standing 
for two or more words of different persons connected by u and" 

28. Write three sentences, each containing a pronoun standing 
for a verb in the infinitive mood used as a noun. 

29. Write three sentences containing the pronoun u it " used 
indefinitely. 

30. Write twelve sentences, three of each class (see page 98), 
each containing the pronoun " that " used instead of " who " or 
" which." 

31. Write three sentences, in each of which omit the relative 
pronoun. 

32. Write three sentences, in each of which omit the antece- 
dent. 

33. Write three sentences, each containing an article, and 
omitting the noun to which the article belongs. 

34. Write three sentences, eafch containing an adjective, and 
omitting the noun which the adjective qualifies. 

35. Write three sentences, each containing an adjective quali- 
fying a verb in the infinitive mood used as a noun. 

36. Write three sentences, each containing an adjective pro- 
noun qualifying some omitted noun. 

37. Write three sentences, each containing a participle used as 
a noun in the nominative case, and retaining its government of 
the objective case. 

38. Write three sentences, each containing a participle used as 
a noun in the objective case, and retaining its government of the 
objective. 

39. Write three sentences, each containing a participle used as 
a noun, and governing another noun in the possessive case. 

40. Write three sentences, each containing a participle used 
simply as a noun. 

41. Write three sentences, each containing a participle used as 
an adjective. 

42. Write three sentences, each containing a participle of the 



120 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

verb " to he" having a noun or pronoun after it in apposition 
with one before it. 

43. Write three sentences, each containing a preposition and 
an adverb to be taken together as an adverb. 

44. Write three sentences, each containing a verb in the infini- 
tive mood depending upon some other verb. 

45. Write three sentences, each containing a verb in the infini- 
tive mood depending upon an adjective. 

46. Write three sentences, each containing a verb in the infini- 
tive mood depending upon a noun. 

47. Write three sentences, each containing a verb in the infini- 
tive mood, with the sign of the infinitive omitted. 

48. Write three sentences, each containing a verb in the infini- 
tive mood used as a noun in the nominative case, and retaining 
its government of the objective. 





EXERCISES 



IN THE 



CORRECTION OF FALSE SYNTAX. 



" John and me went home." 

This sentence is incorrect, because "me" one of the subjects 
of the verb "went" is in the objective case. It should be in the 
nominative case, according to Rule I. (Quote.) The sentence 
should read, " John and I went home." 

" The days of man is but as grass." 

This sentence is incorrect. "Is" is singular. It should be 
plural, because its subject, "days" is plural, according to Rule 
II. (Quote.) The sentence should read, "The days of man are 
but as grass." 

"Life and death is in the power of the tongue." 

This sentence is incorrect. "Is" is singular. It should be 
plural, because it has two subjects connected by "and" accord- 
ing to a note under Rule II. (Quote the Note.) The sentence 
should read, "Life and death are in the power of the tongue." 

"He and they we know, but who art thou? " 

This sentence is incorrect. "Re " and " they" are in the nom- 
inative case. They should be objective, because they are the 
objects of the verb "know" according to Rule III. (Quote.) 
The sentence should read, " Him and them we know, but who 
art thou?" 

11 121 



122 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

" The property was divided between you and I." 
This sentence is incorrect, because U I" one of the objects of 
the preposition "between" is in the nominative case. It should 
be objective, according to Rule IV. (Quote.) The sentence 
should read, " The property was divided between you and me." 

" It was him that did it." 

This sentence is incorrect. "Him" is in the objective case. 
It should be nominative, because the verb " to be " has the same 
case after it as before it, according to Rule VI. (Quote.) The 
sentence should read, "It was he that did it." 

" Neither the captain nor the crew knew his danger." 
This sentence is incorrect. " His" is singular. It should be 
plural, because it stands for two nouns connected by "nor" one 
of which is plural, according to a note under Rule VIII. (Quote 
the Note.) The sentence should read, "Neither the captain nor 
the crew knew their danger." 

Correct the following sentences, giving reasons for the corrections: 

1. Him and her are of the same age. 

2. They and us agreed to do it. 

3. You and them had a long dispute. 

4. Mary and me have studied our lessons. 

5. John and him have gone home. 

6. Mary and her have finished their work. 

7. You was there when we left. 

8. The boys loves to play. 

9. Great pains has been taken to little purpose. 

10. He dare not act contrary to his instructions. 

11. A variety of pleasing objects charm the eye. 

12. The people has no opinion of their own. 

13. The class have been dismissed. 

14. Neither precept nor discipline are so forcible as example. 

15. Either thou or I art mistaken. 



CORRECTION OF FALSE SYNTAX. 123 

16. Either I or thou am mistaken. 

17. To play in the mud, and to walk through the wet grass, 
soils the clothes. 

18. Neither John nor James have arrived. 

19. Ignorance or prejudice have caused this mistake. 

20. John and James was both there. 

21. He or I is to go. 

22. He that is idle, reprove sharply. 

23. He that committed the offence you should punish. 

24. The teacher taught him and 1 to read. 

25. Who did you see at school ? 

26. Who do you want? 

27. He that is needy you should assist. 

28. Let you and I the battle try. 

29. Who did you receive the intelligence from? 

30. Who did you inquire for ? 

31. Nothing has been heard of he or his brother. 

32. We miss our classmate, he who was so kind. 

33. His aunt, her who was here, died suddenly. 

34. My brother, him you saw yesterday, lives in that house. 

35. We should praise God, He who has given us all things. 

36. It was her that told the story. 

37. It was him that told the story. 

38. It was them that we saw. 

39. It was me that wrote the letter. 

40. The Board of Education has just published their annual 
report. 

41. Vice and ignorance have cast its blight over thousands. 

42. A tree is known by his fruit. 

43. If you have a pen or a pencil lend them to me. 

44. He or his brother lost their title. 

45. The tiger is a beast of prey who destroys without pity. 



124 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

46. This is the same picture which we saw before. 

47. All which beauty, all which wealth e'er gave. 

48. Who, who has any sense of duty would act thus. 

49. The lady and the lap dog which we saw at the window. 

50. The infant whom you see in the cradle is very sick. 

51. This is the friend which I love. 

52. Those sort of goods are not durable. 

53. Those sort of people fear nothing. 

54. These kind of persons cannot be trusted. 

55. Much depends on Mary reaching the city promptly. 

56. This apple tastes sweetly. 

57. He lives in a manner suitably to his station in life. 

58. He hoped for a soon and prosperous issue to the war. 

59. They need not to call her. 

60. I dare not to proceed so hastily. 

61. He was seen write the letter. 

62. He bade me to go home. 





SELECTIONS FOR PARSING. 



1. A soft answer turneth away wrath ; but grievous words 
stir up anger. 

2. A good name is better than precious ointment. 

3. A good man obtaineth favor of the Lord. 

4. A righteous man regardeth the life of his beast; but the 
tender mercies of the wicked are cruel. 

5. As thy days, so shall thy strength be. 

6. A man that hath friends must show himself friendly; and 
there is a friend that sticketh closer than a brother. 

7. A word fitly spoken is like apples of gold in pictures of 
silver. 

8. A wise son heareth his father's instruction ; but a scorner 
heareth not rebuke. 

9. And if the blind lead the blind, both shall fall into the 
ditch. 

10. And we know that all things work together for good to 
them that love God. 

11. A wise son maketh a glad father; but a foolish man 
despiseth his mother. 

12. A good name is rather to be chosen than great riches, and 
loving favor rather than silver and gold. 

13. A prudent man foreseeth the evil and hideth ; but the sim- 
ple pass on and are punished. 

11 * 125 



126 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

14. A little that a righteous man hath is better than the riches 
of many wicked. 

15. A false balance is an abomination to the Lord; but a just 
weight is his delight. 

16. A fool uttereth all his mind ; but a wise man keepeth it till 
afterwards. 

IT. A merry heart doeth good like a medicine ; but a broken 
spirit drieth the bones. 

18. A wise man will hear and will increase learning. 

19. An angry man stirreth up strife; and a furious man 
aboundeth in transgression. 

20. All things whatsoever ye would that men should do to 
you, do ye even so to them. 

21. Your voiceless lips, O flowers! are living preachers, 

Each cup a pulpit, and each leaf a book, 
Supplying to my fancy numerous teachers 
From loveliest nook. 

22. In the world's broad field of battle, 

In the bivouac of Life, 
Be not like dumb, driven cattle : 
Be a hero in the strife. 

23. The spacious firmament on high, 
With all the blue ethereal sky, 

And spangled heavens, a shining frame, 
Their great Original proclaim. 

24. Be still, sad heart! and cease repining; 
Behind the clouds is the sun still shining ; 
Thy fate is the common fate of all ; 

Into each life some rain must fall, — 
Some days must be dark and dreary. 

25. Art is long, and time is fleeting, 

And our hearts, though stout and brave, 
Still, like muffled drums, are beating 
Funeral marches to the grave. 



SELECTIONS FOR PARSING. 127 

26. Judge not the Lord by feeble sense, 
But trust him for his grace ; 
Behind a frowning providence 
He hides a smiling face. 

27. Labor is life ! 'T is the still water faileth ; 
Idleness ever despaireth, bewaileth ; 

Keep the watch wound, for the dark rust assaileth ; 
Flowers droop and die in the stillness of noon. 

28. Beside the bed where parting life was laid, 

And sorrow, guilt, and shame by turns dismayed, 
The reverend champion stood. At his control 
Despair and anguish fled the struggling soul, 
Comfort came down, the trembling wretch to raise, 
And his last faltering accents whispered praise. 

29. To him who in the love of Nature holds 
Communion with her visible forms, she speaks 
A various language ; for his gayer hours 

She has a voice of gladness, and a smile 
And eloquence of beauty, and she glides 
Into his darker musings, with a mild 
And healing sympathy, that steals away 
Their sharpness, ere he is aware. 

30. So live, that, when thy summons comes to join 
The innumerable caravan, that moves 

To that mysterious realm where each shall take 
His chamber in the silent halls of death, 
Thou go not like the quarry-slave at night 
Scourged to his dungeon, but, sustained and soothed 
By an unfaltering trust, approach thy grave 
Like one who draws the drapery of his couch 
About him, and lies down to pleasant dreams. 

31. Beside yon straggling fence that skirts the way, 
With blossomed furze unprofitably gay, 
There, in his noisy mansion, skilled to rule, 
The village master taught his little school. 



128 ELEMENTARY GRAMMAR. 

A man severe he was, and stern to view ; 
I knew him well, and every truant knew : 
Well had the boding tremblers learned to trace 
The day's disasters in his morning face; 
Full well they laughed, with counterfeited glee, 
At all his jokes, for many a joke had he; 
Full well the busy whisper, circling round, 
Conveyed the dismal tidings when he frowned. 

32. Abou Ben Adhem (may his tribe increase!) 
Awoke one night from a sweet dream of peace, 
And saw, within the moonlight in his room, 
♦ Making it rich, and like a lily in bloom, 
An angel writing in a book of gold. 
Exceeding peace had made Ben Adhem bold, 
And, to the Presence in the room, he said : 
" What writest thou? " The vision raised its head, 
And, with a look made all of sweet accord, 
Answered, "The names of those who love the Lord! " 
"And is mine one? " asked Abou. " Nay, not so, 1 ' 
Replied the angel. Abou spake more low, 
But cheerily still ; and said, " I pray thee, then, 
Write me as one that loves his fellow-men. " 
The angel wrote, and vanished. The next night 
It came again, with a great wakening light, 
And showed the names whom love of God had bless'd; 
And, lo! Ben Adhem's name led all the rest I 



THE END. 



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